


Never Alone

by ColorfulTaper



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Hunters, Awesome Bobby Singer, BAMF Dean Winchester, BAMF Sam Winchester, Brother Feels, Brothers, Demon Dean Winchester, F/M, Falling In Love, Going to Hell, Hunters & Hunting, Hurt Dean Winchester, Hurt Sam Winchester, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Protective Dean Winchester, Protective Sam Winchester, Psychic Abilities, Purgatory, Sex, Slow Burn, Soulless Sam Winchester, Tags Are Hard, Tags Contain Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2019-12-06 22:12:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 52,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18226079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ColorfulTaper/pseuds/ColorfulTaper
Summary: In this Alternate Universe the Winchester's meet the mysterious Magnum sisters. When John goes missing Dean calls on not only Sam but Kara and Lyra as well.  Raised in the life of hunting the Magnum sisters have their own dark family secrets. Secrets that follow them to this day.  During their travels the 4 hunters discover shocking similarities in their pasts and struggle to come to terms with the fates determined for them.  Love, betrayal, sacrifice, and death plague their every move.  Can the Winchester's and Magnum's find their purpose in this doomed, sad little world?  Will they be able to protect each other from the demons and monsters that haunt the night?





	1. And Then They Meet

**Author's Note:**

> So this is the Supernatural story I was talking about. I am co-writing it with the lovely author Trompy and it has been a long time in the making. I know not everyone is into OC stories but we really wanted to create a story that involved characters that are as damaged as the Winchester's. I hope you all enjoy!

Jumping around from school to school is hard on any child.  But it was quite normal for the Magnums. Two sisters, Lyra and Kara, traveled almost monthly with their father who was a hunter.  Lyra was 14, and Kara was 10. Their mother? Killed in a nursery fire. That incident is what fueled his passion for hunting the supernatural.  This time, it landed them in St. Paul, Minnesota, to hunt some ghosts and possibly a wendigo in some mines while both girls were about to meet a couple boys they had more in common with than they realized.

~

The youngest, Kara, was reading a high-school psychology book while walking the halls during lunch.  Her hazel eyes scanning the pages when she overheard a group of boys threatening another kid. Peeking around a corner of the hall, she spotted a boy her age being picked on by some of the next-years.  She scrunched her eyebrows in anger.

“Give us your lunch money!”

The boy avoided eye contact, his back pressed against a line of lockers.  “I don’t have any…”

Another bully laughed in his face.  “Liar! I saw you eat lunch yesterday.  So where is it?” 

He shook his head.  “I told you, I don’t have any!”

The biggest bully lunged forward, grabbing the collar of the boy’s shirt.  “Hand it over or I’ll beat your ass!”

Kara snapped her book shut and rounded the corner, facing the bullies.  Her short blonde hair swished around her face as she walked. Their heads turned, and the one holding the boy against the locker sneered.  “Oh look, a brave little girl.” 

Kara stomped over to the group and pointed a finger at the bully.  “Listen, just because your mom doesn’t care enough to send you lunch money doesn’t mean you need to steal it from someone else.”  His eyes glossed, and he let go of the boy. 

“Wait how…”  

She turned and looked at another boy.  “And no, it’s not okay that your dad takes out his anger on you.  But you don’t get to forward that anger onto other people. It makes you just as bad as him.”  The second bully flushed, and the third just ran. The two that were left stood frozen in their tracks.  “And neither of you will ever be better than your parents unless you prove them wrong and do good in school, so you can get a decent job and afford to sue their asses for neglect and abuse.”

The bullies walked off, with a few words of confusion whispered under their breath.  The boy who was being bullied sighed, sitting down on the floor in front of his locker.  “Thanks.” Kara smiled, and sat down next to him. “No problem. I’m Kara.” She held out a hand, and he shook it.  He had brown-hazel eyes, and medium length brown hair. 

He smiled.  “Sam.”

Kara opened her book again and scanned the pages once again.  Sam looked at her with wide eyes. “How can you understand any of that?”  

She shrugged.  “I just like it.”

His eyes scanned the page she was on.  “What’s it about?”

“Psychology.”

Sam chuckled.  “Psychology? What’s that?”  

Kara shrugged.  “It’s kinda like, the study of how people think.”  Sam nodded, not really understanding how it was possible you could learn how people think.  He folded his arms. “I don’t like learning, so I guess it doesn’t matter.”

Kara’s hazel eyes glared at Sam.  “Knowledge is power! See how I took out those bullies without lifting a finger?  You could do that too if you like to learn.” Sam shrugged. “Why should I though?  Dad has other plans for me.”

Kara’s eyes went soft, and she gently closed her book, setting it on the floor.  “My dad doesn’t want me to be book smart either. But I have hope for a life outside of his control.  If that ever happens, I want to be ready.”

Sam nodded slowly, hazel eyes looking up at hers.  “Could you teach me?” She shrugged. “I can try!” Sam’s eyes lit up with determination.  “I’d do anything for a normal life. If this helps me do that someday… I’m in!!”

The bell rang, startling them both.  They heard a mass of footsteps leaving the classrooms.  The two stood up and shook hands. Kara smiled. “I guess we’re friends now!”  Sam smiled shyly back at her. His face flushed a little, never having a real friend before besides his brother.

“I guess so.”

~

A group of 8 th graders were doing stretches in the gym.  The short, angry teacher with a receding hairline counted off sit ups and jumping jacks for warm-up before blowing his whistle.  Dean sighed, rolling his green eyes, tired of the warm ups when he knew it was Wednesday; and that was his favorite gym activity… weight-lifting.

He ran into the weight lifting room as soon as the whistle was blown and headed for one of the bench presses.  He always broke the rules by refusing to partner up with someone to spot him; he knew his limits and wasn’t about to start being a wuss now.  He tousled his spiky dirty blonde hair before throwing a fifty pound weight on each end of the bar. He sat down on the bench and was about to position himself when a girl stood over him, spotting for him.  She had brown hair like Sam’s that even in a ponytail went to the bottom of her shoulders, and her eyes were a hazel that could almost be mistaken for green. She smirked down at him. “You really think you can bench a hundred?  Let’s see if those muscles are just for show.” He snickered. 

“As If you could do any better, twiggy.”  She was lean but didn’t seem to have much muscle.  A spark lit in his soul and he felt the need to prove her wrong.  Grasping the bar, he lowered the weights right above his chest, and pushed them up off him, straightening his arms.  The girl watched with her arms crossed, boredom written over her face. Dean made 20 repetitions before setting the bar back in its rest.  “Do you want to try cupcake?”

She smiled, the lack of worry in her face making Dean sweat.  “Sure.” Dean got off the bench and switched positions with the girl.  He grasped the bar unlike she had, readying to save her ass when she couldn’t push it back up off her.  He was completely unprepared to see her take the weight with ease and press thirty times before setting it back to its resting place.  She looked up at him with a smirk, not a bead of sweat on her complexion. “Add 25 to each side, will you?” Dean caught a laugh in his throat.  

“Are you kidding me?  You’ll kill yourself.”  She shook her head, repeating the words he had told himself earlier.  “I know my limits. Now do it,  _ partner _ .”  Dean pressed his lips together, eyebrows scrunching in frustration with this girl.  Who was she and why was she trying to out-do him? He reluctantly added the fifty pounds and she handled it with relative ease, this time glossing her skin with a thin layer of sweat.  When she set the bar back down Dean added another hundred and put himself on the bench. The girl looked down at him with worry. “Are you sure you can handle that?” Dean scoffed. “Of course I can, now shut up!”

Dean sat under the bar for a moment, teeth clenched.  He’d never really pressed more than 200, and he preferred to go up by tens instead of a whole fifty.  He took a deep breath and lifted the bar, arms already screaming at him to stop. But the girl’s green gaze created a wave of adrenaline that allowed him to press it once, but only once.  He got the bar back down to his chest and his arms failed him. The bar ended up resting on his chest and he couldn’t breathe. His face lit up red when he could only move the bar back to it’s resting place with the girl’s help.  She chuckled at him as he sat up rubbing his painful sternum. 

“You’ve never benched more than 200 before have you?”

Dean glared up at her, trying to catch is breath, arms tingling with pain.  Defeated already, he decided to give in with a half-truth. “Maybe.” She sat down on the bench next to him.  “How did you know?” He asked, arms dropping down to his side unable to keep rubbing his chest.

“I went up by 50 once.  The exact same thing happened to me.”

Dean shook his head.  “Guess you caught me. Why are you training so hard?”

She shrugged.  “I’ve got a little sister I need to protect.”  He nodded. “Same, but a brother. Hey, what’s your name?”

She smiled, holding out her hand.  “Lyra.”

He took her hand in his hand shook with what little strength he had left.  “Dean.”

“So, Dean.”  Lyra wiped the sweat he transferred on her hand with his shirt.  “What do you like to do besides showing off for girls?”

He smiled and ran a hand through his hair.  “Fix classic cars and listen to classic rock.”  Lyra punched him on the shoulder. “No freaking way dude.  You’re making fun of me.” Dean shook his head. “No, I’m not!  Honest, I like those things more than girls.”

She squealed a little.  “Those are some of MY favorite things!  Do you want to hang out later?” He looked at her curiously, and saw she was being honest with her question and not slutty about it like the other girls he was used to.  Smiling, he nodded. 

“Yeah! That’d be great.”

~

About a week later during study hall, Kara sat with Sam with their history textbook in front of them.  “Now, the reason history in school sucks so much is because they don’t tell it in order. They jump around, and it doesn’t make any sense.”  Kara spoke quietly to Sam, his head nodding. 

“The only thing I’ve learned in history is that there are a lot of bad people in this world.”  Sam sighed, scratching the back of his neck. Kara lightly smiled. “It’s the sad truth. And I believe in monsters.”

Sam chuckled.  “You have no idea.”

Kara just nodded, not wanting to reveal her family’s work and look insane to her first real friend, unaware he was talking about the same things.  “So anyway, if you put all the events in order in your mind before learning them, it becomes a lot easier to remember what happened, who was involved, and who won.”

Sam scribbled down the information his blonde friend gave him.  “This is going to be so helpful!” Sadness filled his eyes as he looked up to Kara.  “Dad should be done with his job next week… we will be moving again.”

Kara frowned. “Aw man… you really do move a lot.  Our dad tries to keep us in one spot for as long as possible, so, we should be here for a little while longer.”

Sam looked out the window of the classroom.  “We never stay anywhere long.” He looked back to Kara.  “I really have to thank you for all these tips. I couldn’t remember anything before but now it’s so easy!”  She beamed a smile, and he continued. “If I had a phone I’d give you the number, but only my brother has one…”  Kara chuckled.

“It’s okay.  I don’t have one either.  It’s really sad, though. You’re like, my best friend ever.”  Sam blushed, and that made Kara giggle. They looked up at the clock and realized they only had a few minutes left.  “I really hope you get to have a normal life someday.” Sam never told her why his life wasn’t normal, except that they moved a lot and his dad was strict, but Kara felt she could understand him no matter what his life was life back home, all things considered.  Sam smiled, albeit sadly. “You’re my first real friend too, Kara! I swear I’m going to go to college someday and I’m going to make a life for myself.” 

Kara closed the textbook on the desk. “I’m planning on going to Stanford.  It’s one of the best! Dad can’t tell me what to do if I get into THAT college for sure!!” 

Sam’s eyes brightened.  “Stanford, huh?” She nodded, and the bell rang.  They got out of their desks and headed for their lockers.  “That sounds like it would be hard.”

She shrugged, opening her locker, as hers was nearest the classroom.  Sam stood by, waiting for her. “Just try your best and I’m sure you can get into any college too!”  She grabbed her book for the next class and then shut her locker, walking Sam to his where he gathered his things.  “I’ll make sure to teach you every learning trick I know before you leave!” 

Sam smiled, and shook her hand.  “Maybe I’ll even meet you in Stanford someday!”

“Sounds like a plan!”  The two high-fived and headed back into the classroom for their next class.

~

Lyra leaned up against the brick building, Dean standing next to her, a soda in hand.  “Yeah, my dad says he’s going to give me the Impala when I’m old enough.” 

Lyra huffed, crossing her arms.  “Damn! You’re so lucky.” They looked out at the parking lot.  “I would kill for a 1968 Pontiac GTO.” 

Dean nodded, lips turned up in a half-smile.  “Ooh, nice. Good choice.” Lyra smiled, stealing the bottle from him and taking a swig.  He shrugged his shoulders at her and glared. “Hey! I paid for that!”

She smiled, giving it back to him.  “You drank half of mine yesterday, it’s only fair.”  He groaned, downing the rest of the bottle just to make sure she didn’t get any more of it.  He threw it into the grass and put his hands in his pockets. Lyra sighed. “This has been fun.  It’s a shame you gotta leave so soon.” Dean nodded, a pout on his lips. “Yeah. I don’t get to make actual friends very often.” 

“I bet not.”  The two stayed leaning up against the building even when the bell rang.  Neither one made a move. “I don’t feel like going back in right now. Screw math, right?”  Dean exclaimed and they both laughed, and collectively decided to ignore the siren. Lyra turned, facing Dean.  “So, I’ve known you a week and you haven’t offered me your phone number?” His cheeks showed a faint tinge of red, and he smiled.  “I don’t usually associate with people who beat me in gym class.” Chuckling, he pulled out his phone. “Let alone give them my phone number, but here.”  She pulled out hers and they exchanged numbers, putting them straight into their phones.

Lyra put her phone back in her pocket and smiled, green eyes sparkling.  “We need to keep in touch. With how much we travel, we’re sure to cross paths at some point.”  

Dean nodded, keeping in a chuckle.  “And nobody can sing Bohemian Rhapsody like we can!”

She shook her head, looking back up at the clouds.  “Hell yeah. Rock-on forever.”

The two stood in silence, enjoying each other’s company.  They knew they probably wouldn’t run into each other anytime soon, and it was a painful thought neither of them wanted to think about right now.  Neither had any friends in the past, and it was a good change. But they did know they only had a couple days left together at the max, and even if they did nothing, hanging out together was some of the best glimpse of normal either one had experienced in years.

Dean checked his watch and smiled.  “It’s ten minutes to gym class. I’m gunna pummel your ass as revenge for yesterday’s defeat in dodgeball.”  Lyra cracked a smile, shaking her head. “I don’t think so. I’m the dodge-ball queen. You can’t beat me!”

Dean tousled her hair, and she pulled away, a pretend scowl on her face.  “I won’t let you beat me because I need to make sure I’m strong enough to protect my sister.”  Dean sighed, fixing her hair. “Well I’m trying to protect my little brother. Maybe we can come to a truce?”  Lyra raised an eyebrow, folding her arms as dean finished fixing her hair. “How so?”

Dean shrugged his shoulders.  “I dunno. I feel like I could count on you to protect my little brother if something ever happened to me.  Maybe I could promise to be there for your sister if the same ever happened to you.” Lyra eyed him up and down for a moment before sticking out a hand, and Dean took it in a firm shake.  “Deal. If I ever need any help… you’re my guy.”

Dean smirked.  “And you’re my go-to girl.”

The bell rang, and they both glared at each other, smiles on their faces.  

“Game on, Jerk!”  Lyra bolted for the door, and Dean chuckled.

“I’d call you a bitch, but that’s rude towards a lady.”

“Damn straight!”

~

John Winchester dropped his boys off at the school.  He had been quiet all last night after his hunt and it was bothering Dean.  His jacket had been covered in blood and he said his partner was killed. Dean tried fishing for information but he refused to answer him.  Now as the teen walked inside the building with Sam, their eyes were drawn to familiar faces in the principal’s office. Lyra and her little sister Kara were inside, being talked to by the principal and another lady dressed in a beige suit.  Dean and Sam both stood and watched as Lyra yelled at the lady, an arm wrapped protectively around her sister. Kara’s eyes wandered and found Sam’s, and they were wide with fear. Dean felt his blood boil and he went against his better judgement and barged into the office, Sam following close behind.  The lady stopped talking and Lyra turned in surprise, tear streaks shining on her cheeks.

“Lyra…” Dean’s green eyes glared warily at the adults in the room.  “Are you okay?”

She nodded, although her eyes welled up with more tears.  “They’re trying to take us away to foster care. My father… died last night.”

Dean’s breath caught in his throat as he thought back to his father’s words last night.  He needed to ask her if her father was a hunter, but not here. He hoped he was wrong. He stood next to Lyra, not seeing Sam’s little hand wrap with Kara’s for comfort.  The foster care lady would have looked down to Dean if he wasn’t taller than her. Her words cold as ice. “Because of the age difference they have to go to different homes.  I promised them they can keep in touch, so I don’t see what the problem is. This young lady needs to settle down.”

Lyra opened to mouth to protest when Dean cut in for her.  “Her little sister is all she has left, how can separating them NOT be a big deal?!  Are you heartless?” Lyra shot a thankful smile towards Dean. The lady shook her head.  “I don’t make the rules. Now come willingly or there will be consequences.” 

One of Dean’s hands gripped Lyra’s shoulder.  She looked at him, ready to cry again. He imagined losing his brother like this, and it hurt his heart too much to even think about.  “It’s going to be okay. Two years and you will be able to drive, and then you can see each other every day.” Lyra’s shoulders dropped in defeat.  “But how am I supposed to protect her if I’m not there? Two years is a long time…”

The principal broke in, separating Dean and Lyra.  Sam and Kara’s hands separated too. “She said you can stay in contact.  Boys, get to class. This is none of your business.”

Dean’s voice raised.  “It is my business! She’s my friend!”

The lady shook her head and grabbed Kara’s hand.  “Time to go.”

She started dragging the ten-year-old, knowing where she went, Lyra would follow.  Dean watched helplessly as his friend was forced out of the school. His heart aching for them, he called out.  “Call me!!”

Lyra looked back, tears in her eyes and waved good-bye.  Kara shot a thumbs-up to Sam, wishing him luck in class. He nodded, and both boys watched their friends leave.  The bell rang, and after watching the car they got into leave the parking lot, they slowly headed off to class. Dean’s anger rising knowing his father might have something to do with this.

~

A few days had passed, and Dean tried multiple times to get in contact with Lyra.  Her phone would ring to voicemail, and her texts would stay unread. He was starting to get worried about her.  He had realized he never asked her last name, and wanted to know how to find her in the future. He even tried calling the foster care unit in the area, but they refused to tell him any information without a last name.  He threw his phone on his bed, and looked over at Sam. He had been studying hard, and even though they were moving schools again today, it looked like he was well prepared. He frowned, thinking again how great the possibility that something would happen to their dad.  Dean wouldn’t let anything happen to Sammy. Not like that. He shook his head, and admitted defeat. She would either get in contact, or she wouldn’t.

Back at the foster home, Lyra cried on her new temporary bed.  They had lied and took Kara away without a contact or a word. They said she couldn’t stay in touch, and they even took her phone away before she had a chance to write down Dean’s phone number.  She was alone. The chances of finding her sister were slim especially if they changed her last name. Sighing, she opened a book on Greek lore, and opened her un-used leather notebook that her father gave her in his will.  She began writing the basics of her hunter knowledge and swore not to let her hunter past go to waste or disappear. And she swore to one day find her sister, and in the back recesses of her mind, she hoped to find Dean, too.

Kara sat in her room, tears streaming down her little face, clouding her hazel eyes.  She swore not to forget her sister, but she decided to take this change as a gift. It was her opportunity for a normal life.  And she had to work hard to meet Sam at Stanford, and not even the loss of her sister was going to stop her.

 


	2. Reunion

Sam sat in the college desk, leaned forward, scribbling notes in his notebook.  Ten years had passed and he was an honor student in high school, and made his way to Stanford.  The law teacher was absent today and this allowed Sam to take extra notes in this spare time, but he found his mind wandering.  He could still clearly see her; that friend Kara who taught him to learn. It had taken being shunned by his father and he practically stopped contact with his brother, but he made it out of the hunting business.  He had a girlfriend he wanted to marry, and had been granted a free ride through law school. He hadn’t thought of Kara in a long time, but he smiled at her memory, wondering if he would ever meet her here like she said she would.  If only to thank her for giving him this chance at a better life.

The bell rang, startling him back to the present day.  He quickly shoved his things back into his heavy backpack and made his way into the hall.  Without even looking at the clock he knew he had the next two hours off, so he planned to head back to his dorm to have lunch and take some more notes.  Suddenly he collided with another person, and they went flying backwards, barely moving him an inch. His height was a benefit sometimes. Bending down to help the young lady up that he knocked over, he paused, a gasp escaping his throat.  “Kara?!”

An all-too familiar young blonde with hazel eyes looked up at him with confusion.  She took his hand and stood, throwing her backpack over her shoulder. “Uh, yeah? And you are?”

Sam smiled from ear to ear.  “It’s me! Sam, from St. Paul?!”

Kara’s eyes lit up, looking him over.  “Oh shit!! Sam!!” She lifted a hand for a high-five, and smirked.  “You made it to Stanford!”

He shook his head, mouth agape with wonder.  “I was literally just thinking about you in my last class.”

She laughed shrugging her shoulders.  “I’m off for lunch, wanna catch up?” Sam nodded, his brown hair falling into his face.  “Yeah, sounds good!”

Kara followed Sam to his dorm and he shared a beer and a sandwich.  Sam sighed, still not believing his eyes were telling the truth. He sat the beer down, clinking on the table.  “I still can’t believe we actually met back up at Stanford like you said we would.” Kara cracked it open and took a sip.  “I feel awful; I’d honestly forgotten about you after foster care.”

Sam sighed, flashes of Dean arguing at the principal crossing his mind.  “Yeah, I remember. Did you get to stay with your sister?” Kara’s eyes darkened as she took another sip of her beer.  Sam took a swig of his, feeling guilty. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.”

Kara shook her head.  “The head mistress lied to us both, said we would keep in contact.  Next thing we know we’re being sent off to different ends of the country and they refused to let us even know where the other went.”  Sam’s mouth turned into a frown, and she waved her hand. “It’s okay, really. If dad hadn’t died, I’d have never gotten out of that mess.”  She looked at Sam, digging into her sandwich. “So, how about you? How did you get out of your family issues?”

Sam chuckled.  “I refused to let dad tell me what to do.  My brother stayed with him and I haven’t talked with either of them in a few years.  It hurts, but it’s worth it to be normal for once.”

Kara lifted her beer and they clinked them.  Sam checked the clock to make sure he still had time.  “So, what are you in Stanford for?” 

“Psychology, big surprise.  You?”

“Law school.  I’m hoping to be a lawyer.”

The two chatted, and when they ran out of time they exchanged phone numbers.  Kara smiled widely. “We should become study buddies again!”

Sam chuckled, smiling at his friend.  “I’d love it! I just need to introduce you to my girlfriend sometime, so she doesn’t get suspicious.”  Kara smirked, nodding her head. “I understand! When should I come visit next?” They set up a date and time to study here at Sam’s so his girlfriend could meet her, and it became almost a daily thing.  

If they didn’t study, they would chat about random things.  Philosophy, Psychology, Law… nothing was off limits to these two.  He even asked her for opinions on how to ask Jess to marry him! They became best friends once again, as if they had never parted in the first place.  

~

A man with short spiky dark blonde hair and striking green eyes was wandering his way through a bar, the lights dim and the music loud.  His eyes were peeled for decorations of satanic meaning; crude dolls, crucifixes and pentagrams. He smiled at a few lovely ladies along the way, offering a raise of the eyebrows and a slight nod as he passed, until his eyes landed on some familiar symbols written in a leather-bound notebook laying on a table.  A young woman sat in front of it, her back towards him, scribbling away into the object. He peeked over her shoulder at the book, and his right hand slowly grasped his gun in his back pocket. Ready to draw fire in a moments notice, he came around her side into view, his finger pressed on the trigger behind his back.  His voice loud enough to cut through the music but soft enough so nobody else would hear, he spoke. “Excuse me mam, mind if I ask what you’re writing about?”

The lady lifted her eyes off the page.  Her green eyes met his, and after a moment of staring, the two smiled at each other.  Dean’s hand left his gun and ran it through his hair instead. “Holy shit, it’s you!”

Dimples exposed themselves on her right cheek as she let out a laugh.  “Dean! It’s nice to see you!” She reached out a hand, and Dean grasped it firmly, giving it a shake.  “Lyra, you sure are a sight for sore eyes!” Her hair now cut shoulder length and layered, dyed a dark plum color with red hues shining in the lights, covered up her natural brown tones.  But he instantly recognized her face. She gestured to the seat across from her. “Please, sit! We can catch up!”

Dean sat down, a goofy smile gracing his features, as he waived down a waitress and ordered a beer.  Lyra took an appletini. “I never thought I would run into you.” Dean said, taking a swig of his beer.  Lyra nodded, excited to reunite with her friend. “Same! So, how are you?” He leaned back in his chair, sighing.  “Well, all things considered, not too bad.” He looked around the establishment, keeping an eye out for any more signs.  Lyra put down her pen to take a sip of her drink. Dean shook his head, looking over his old friend, a wave of anger coming over him.  Her betrayal reigned fresh in his mind. “Why didn’t you call me back, Lyra?”

Her eyes softened at his words, and she sighed.  “I’m so sorry, Dean. I meant to.” She closed her notebook and looked him in the eyes.  “After we were taken to the foster home… they separated us. My sister and I.” Dean’s mouth opened slightly with shock, his eyebrows came together in disbelief.  “And to make matters worse, they took away my phone before I had a chance to copy any numbers down. Breaking my promise was the last thing I wanted to do.” The corner of her mouth turned up in a half-smile.  “I never forgot about you, and that’s the truth.”

Dean’s eyes softened, and his years of angst for the girl washed away with her simple explanation.  He quickly felt his blood boil, though. “Why the hell would they do that?” She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders.  Dean set his beer down with a clink. “Did you find her at least?” Lyra took a deep breath and chuckled. “The life I live isn’t exactly normal.  I figured she was better off without me.”

Dean’s face twisted into a scowl.  “I’m sorry, but you don’t just give up on your family.  I thought you said you needed to protect her?” She looked up at him, a glare in her eyes.  “I am; by keeping her out of it.”

Dean snatched her notebook, her grip too weak to pull it back from him.  “Protecting her from what? Voodoo? Satanism? A cult?” He flipped through the pages, and her mad face broke into a smile and she laughed.  “I saw the notes in this; it’s serious business. What are you trying to accomplish?” Dean tensed, ready to reach for his gun again.

“You’re got the wrong idea; I’m not worshiping anything or performing forbidden rituals.”  He looked at her, eyebrows raised, hand raised in questioning. “I’m taking notes on said supernatural activities, so I can prevent or disable them.”

Dean looked through the notebook, confusion written all over his handsome face.  “Wait… so you’re a hunter?”

Lyra’s face mirrored his.  “Wait, you… you understand?”

Dean’s jaw hung open.  He whispered to her, looking suspiciously around the room.  “I’m a hunter too!” His thoughts flashed back to their interactions as teenagers and his muscles relaxed, slouching in his chair, a hand coming up to his forehead.  “God damnit it all makes sense!”

Lyra’s head moved from side to side.  “I don’t understand. You’re the first person I’ve met who believes in the same things I do.”  Dean chuckled, and downed half of his beer in one go. “My father is a hunter. I’m here on some voodoo business, he’s off somewhere else.”  Lyra looked at him with wide eyes. “And your brother?”

Dean threw his hands in the air.  “Trying to be normal. He ran off to Stanford to become a lawyer.”  Dean gave Lyra’s notebook back to her and she smiled. “I can only hope my sister has a normal life.”  Dean grabbed a napkin and stole her pen, writing something on it. “I could help you find her if you want?”  She shook her head, and he handed her the napkin. “Nah. If I’m meant to be reunited with her, then it will happen.  Just like you!” He smirked, and pointed to the napkin. “That’s my number. Don’t lose it this time?” She laughed, putting it in her notebook.  “Sure thing!”

He looked around some more before asking about the notebook.  “So how did you get started? Your father?” Lyra nodded, and gripped the leather-bound pages in her hands.  “Yep. He left me this notebook in his Will. When I was in foster care I moved around a lot, so I took notes on activity, and added more later by researching.”  He smiled, comparing it to Sam. “I don’t do much actual ‘hunting’ per say, but the goal is for my notes to come in handy someday.”

A memory flashed across Dean’s mind, and he jumped in his chair.  “What’s your last name?” Lyra startled at his sudden movement and chuckled.  “Magnum. Why?” Dean’s heart sank, and he didn’t have the heart to tell her that it was indeed his father’s fault that her dad died, causing the separation between Lyra and her sister.  He shrugged. “Nothing. I just knew that’s why I couldn’t find you in the past. I never had your last name.” Lyra smirked. “You searched for me?” Dean’s face almost showed a tinge of red as he shifted in his chair.  “Maybe.” The way she looked at him made him cave. “Hey, I was worried about you, okay?” Lyra laughed, and Dean avoided her gaze. “Well, thanks. My first stalker, how romantic.” Dean shot her a playful glare and she polished off her drink.  She looked at the time and sighed. “What’s wrong?” Dean asked. She shook her head, shoving her notebook into her bag. 

“Well, lets see.  The car I was using broke down last week, I couldn’t find any jobs around here, and yesterday I ran out of money for the hotel I was staying at.  So it looks like I’m out on the streets again.” Dean’s gears inside his mind turned, and he finished his beer. 

“Hey, I’ve got an extra bed in my room in case dad came back, but I haven’t heard from him so it’s open.  And my car has plenty of room.” Lyra raised an eyebrow at him, and opened her mouth to speak, but Dean interrupted her.  “If you share some of your knowledge, I’ll let you hang with me until you can get back on your feet.” Lyra smiled, and her cheeks flashed red.  “Dean, that’s really generous, but I can’t possibly.”

Dean stood from his chair, leaving money on the table for the drinks.  “Seriously Lyra, you would be doing me a huge favor.” His eyes sparkled cunningly.  “And it’s pretty lonely driving the impala all by myself.” Lyra’s eyes lit up. “You got the Impala?!”  Dean’s smile widened from ear to ear. “Hell yeah I did. And I’ve got tons of classic rock cassette tapes to listen to for the ride in the glove box.  You in?” Lyra swung her bag over her shoulder, jumping down off her chair. Her eyes gleamed with a need for adventure. “Guess I ain’t got nothing better to do!”  Dean brought a big hand up to Lyra’s head and messed up her hair. 

“Alright!  Follow me hotshot.”

 


	3. This Girl Is On Fire

~A Week Later~

Lyra sat in the passenger side of the Impala with a map in hand, Dean’s lips curved in a frown.  The setting sun shone in his eyes making him squint. “Are you sure we’re on the right road?” Lyra nodded, twirling her hair with a free hand.  “Yes, Dean. Stanford is just an hour away.”

He groaned, slouching further into his seat.  “We’ve been on the road for three days. Why did Sam have to go to school on the other side of the country?!”

Lyra cracked a smile.  “To get away from you?”  Dean’s green eyes flashed angrily in her direction, and she raised her hands in surrender.  He pouted, turning his eyes back onto the road. “If Dad would just answer his damn phone I wouldn’t have to bow down to my idiot brother.”

“Hey,” Lyra began.  “There’s nothing wrong about asking for help.”  Dean’s hand moved from it’s place on the wheel to run through his hair.  “There is when our last conversation wasn’t exactly love letters and roses.”  Lyra shrugged, hanging her arm out the window. “If it helps, I haven’t talked to my sibling in ten years, don’t worry about it so much.”

Dean looked down, gripping his amulet necklace.  “You see this?” Lyra turned her head to look and nodded.  “Sam gave this to me. I haven’t taken it off since.” She stared at him, and he continued.  “I just feel bad the way we left things, okay?” Lyra smiled, her eyes betraying her sadness, showing off her bracelet.  It was a stainless steel made of various pentagrams and anti-possession symbols linked in chains. Dean could recognize each symbol.  “My little sister gave this to me. I wear it all the time like you wear yours. Guess that’s something else we have in common.”

Dean shook his head.  “I assume she has a name.  Why don’t you ever use it?”  Lyra shrugged, looking back down at her map.  “Guess I don’t want you getting any funny ideas and tracking her down.”  Dean’s eyebrows raised, his head slowly nodding, and he sighed. “You got me there.”  He paused, considering his next words. “So, what got you into the hunting business?” 

Lyra shifted in her seat.  “My mom was killed by a demon in the nursery.”  

The blood drained from Dean’s face, and he nearly went off the side of the road as he stared wide eyed at his friend.  “Let me guess… he killed her, stuck her to the ceiling and set her on fire?” Lyra’s eyes went wide, watching her friend shake his head. “We’re searching for the same demon.”

Lyra shook her head in denial.  “No, that can’t possibly be the same one.”

Dean looked at her, hands gripped tight to the steering wheel.  “It has to be! My father was working with yours for a reason.” 

Lyra’s shocked expression made Dean realize he had shared too much.  She squinted at him. “He what?”

Dean sighed, glancing apologetically towards her.  “My dad told me he worked with a Magnum a few times.  It’s why the two of us ended up in the same area and met in the first place.”  

Lyra crossed her arms.  “And you didn’t bother to tell me earlier?”

Dean shrugged his shoulders.  “I’m sorry; I thought it wasn’t important before now.”

She sighed, looking out the window.  “Good thing we are going to get your brother so we can find John, because I have some questions for him.”  Dean pursed his lips and shrugged, dropping the conversation. The two of them rode in silence the rest of the ride.

~A few hours later~

Sam lay in bed when he heard a noise from another room in his apartment.  His eyes snapped open, and he quickly but quietly removed the covers, trying not to disturb Jess, while he got up to investigate.  He turned into the hallway and saw a window open in the dining room that had been previously shut. Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement, and crept towards it.  Hiding behind a door, he waited until the intruder walked into the room, and he jumped out, wrapping his arms around their neck.

Sam was thrown off the intruder and he brawled for his life.  The person was tall, probably a man from the outline, and put up a good fight.  He threw a punch at his face, but was thrown to the floor when his arm was twisted.  He readied a retaliation when he paused, recognizing the face. The man smiled. “Woah, easy tiger!”  

Sam’s face twisted with confusion as he looked up at his brother.  “Dean!?” Taking deep breaths, he glared. “You scared the crap outta me!”

Dean chuckled.  “It’s ‘cuz you’re out of practice.”  Dean went to help Sam up from the floor and was then flipped, becoming pinned to the floor himself.  “Or not.” With a final chuckle he frowned. “Get off me.”

Sam helped Dean off the floor, and half-smiled at his brother.  “What are you doing here?” 

“Actually I was looking for a beer.”  Dean joked, and another figure walked into room, startling him worse than Dean had.  

The lights turned on, and Sam saw it was a woman standing not too far behind Dean.  He jumped, and Jess gasped at the sudden movement. “Sam?!”

He looked questioningly at the unfamiliar woman and then back to his girlfriend. “Jess…”  He sighed, and pointed to his brother. “Dean, meet my girlfriend, Jessica.” 

Jess’s eyes lit up.  “You mean your brother Dean?”  Dean saluted the young blonde, and she glanced over at the mystery woman.  “And who is she?”

Sam shrugged, looking over to Dean.  The green-eyed man sighed, glancing over to the woman.  Her purple hair hid her blushing face as she smiled, handing Dean a beer that she had presumably found in the fridge. “That’s Lyra.  She’s with me.” Jess looked her up and down, and smiled, not seeing her as a threat, assuming she was ‘with’ Dean. Lyra waved, feeling intimidated by the beautiful blonde, and Sam glared as he saw Dean opening his beer.  “Hey!”

Dean took a swig and glanced between his brother and the blonde.  “We need to talk. Without barbie, if that’s okay?” Sam’s eyebrows scrunched in anger.  “Don’t talk to her like that.” He moved over to Jessica’s side. “And no, whatever you have to say, you can say in front of her.”

Dean shook his head.  “Fine. Dad hasn’t been home in a few days.”

Sam folded his arms.  “So? He’ll show up eventually, he always does.”

Dean sighed.  “No, Sam. Dad’s been on a hunting trip… and hasn’t been home in a few days.”

Sam’s eyes clouded in worry, and he excused his girlfriend, who presumably went back to bed.  His eyes caught Lyra’s, and she avoided his gaze by turning her attention back to the beer she was holding.  He walked the two into the kitchen, turning on the lights and sat them down at the dining table. He stayed standing, towering over the pair as they sat.  “You know you can’t just break into my house in the middle of the night and expect me to be sympathetic, right? Especially with a stranger at your side?” Lyra glared into her bottle, unable to look towards the man who had just insulted her, and who seemed to make her heart race with even just his handsome voice, let alone his face.  

Dean slouched in his chair.  “Hey, she’s a good friend. A great researcher, just like you were, Sammy.”  Lyra could feel Sam’s gaze on her and her blush deepened. Sam chuckled. “Oh, so she’s my replacement?”  Dean scoffed. “Of course not. She’s an upgrade.” The green-eyed man noticed Sam’s unbreaking gaze towards his friend and he smirked.  “You seem to think so too.” Lyra shot a glare at Dean for his comment.

Sam folded his arms, shaking his head, breaking his staring, a light red tint adding to his cheeks.  “So why the Hell are you here, Dean?” The two talked back and forth about the job Dean was on, and Lyra snuck glances at Sam when she knew he wasn’t looking.  He was a gorgeous man, she thought. Maybe she should have asked Dean for some photo ID on his brother before agreeing to come with…

Lyra’s thoughts were broken when Sam sighed.  “Fine. I’ll come with. But it’s Friday and I have some things I need to do for my REAL life first, so why don’t you…” He stopped to look at Lyra, accidentally meeting her gaze and almost getting lost in her green eyes before looking back at Dean.  “The both of you… crash here for today and we will leave at sundown. Okay?”

Lyra nodded, and Dean shrugged, his fingers tapping impatiently on his empty bottle.  “Fine.” Sam left the room momentarily and Lyra raised an arm, punching Dean in the shoulder.  He glared at her and hissed. “Ow! What the Hell was that for?!” 

Lyra’s fierce green eyes met his confused ones.  She yelled in a whisper. “You didn’t tell me your brother was HOT!!!”  Dean’s nose scrunched in disgust. “Dude. Gross.”

Sam walked back in with blankets and pillows in hand and Lyra looked away from Dean as if nothing had happened.  Sam glanced at Dean who was still looking at Lyra a little funny, and raised his eyebrows, letting out a sigh. “Here.  The two of you can fight over the couch and the recliner.” Dean jumped up, nearly knocking Lyra over as he grabbed the blanket and pillow from Sam and ran into the living room.  Lyra and Sam stood stunned as they both quickly heard the familiar ‘ding’ of a recliner’s lever being lifted and locked into place. Dean giggled like a little girl in the other room and Lyra and Sam smiled, sharing a quick glance at each other.  Sam felt his face heat up as he handed the girl her own blanket and pillow, admiring her smile. “Guess you get the couch.”

She sighed, getting up off the chair.  “Thanks. See you later.” She tiptoed around the moose of a man and went to make the couch into her bed for the night.  Sam felt his heart skip at the sound of her voice; he had no idea she would sound as angelic as she looked. In fact, he was hoping she hadn’t been.  He shook his head, shutting off the lights and heading back to Jessica.

~

Sam came back to the apartment around noon for lunch to see Dean and Lyra polishing and loading their guns on the kitchen table.  Sam groaned. “You know I could get in trouble for having those in here, right?” Dean smiled, glancing up at the tall hazel eyed man.  “Does it look like I care?”

Lyra chuckled, eyes never leaving the gun she was holding.  “I already told him it was a stupid idea.” Sam’s eyes glanced at her exposed shoulders; the jacket she had been wearing last night was thrown over the back of a chair and she was wearing a tank-top.  She had pale skin, and the daylight coming through the windows brought out the freckles on her shoulders. Dean glared at Sam, and snapped his fingers, brining his gaze back to his brother. 

“Got any food?”  Sam shook his head and walked over to the fridge, opening it up and glancing around.  “Not really. This is the college life, Dean, not Hollywood.” Sam closed the fridge, looking over to Lyra when she chuckled.  

“I told you to pack something.”

Dean looked up from his gun and glared at his friend.  “How as I supposed to know Sam was broke?!” 

Lyra sighed.  “Because I told you so?”  She reached over to her jacket and pulled a poptart bag out of a pocket.  She opened it and handed Dean one of the pastries, taking a bite out of the other one.  Dean fisted the air in success and started eating. 

Sam raised an eyebrow.  “Why are you so nice to him?” 

She smiled, meeting his eyes for the briefest of moments.  “Free roof and transportation.” 

Dean nodded, a mouthful of food.  “I mean it’s technically free for me too because of the whole identity theft and credit card fraud thing, but she won’t go to jail if we get busted.  It’s really unfair for me now that I think about it.” 

Lyra threw a smirk at Dean.  “The 30-day trial period has ended, no returns accepted.”

Dean made a sarcastic face and Sam shook his head at the two.  The doorbell rang and Sam glared at Dean, gesturing to the guns.  “Pack these up, will you?” 

Dean made a pouty face as Sam left to go answer the door.  As he unlocked the handle and opened it up he was greeted with a familiar blonde hair, hazel-eyes face.  His girlfriend stood behind her. “Hey! Didn’t you get my text? I told you I can’t study today.” 

Kara pushed him aide and came into the entryway, Jess following.  “Yeah, but did you really think I would miss an opportunity to meet the infamous brother Dean?”  

Sam rubbed his forehead.  “I knew I shouldn’t have said anything.”

Kara turned to face him, a hand on her hip, gesturing to Jess.  “Jess told me he was here too. I would have killed you if you didn’t tell me!”  She glanced into the living room. “So where is he?”

Dean appeared from the kitchen with a huge duffel bag hung over his shoulder.  “I heard my name?” Kara’s jaw dropped as her hand flew up to cover her mouth. She turned to glare at Sam, and coming to her wits she closed her mouth and folded her arms in front of her.  She cleared her throat, a blush rising on her cheeks. “That’s him?”

A corner of Dean’s lip curved in a half-smile.  His eyes sparkled, looking the girl over. She had the prettiest blonde hair and hazel eyes he had ever seen.  “Sam, you never told me you had a side-girl?” Jess shook her head, an unamused smile on her face. “He doesn’t.  She’s his study partner…” She paused to see Dean’s flirtatious smirk as he looked at Kara. “And I thought you were with Lyra?”

Kara’s amused smile dropped at the sound of the name.  Her heart raced at the possibility. “Lyra?”

Dean’s face twisted as if he’d smelled a skunk.  “Oh God no, Lyra’s just a friend, trust me. She’s even too kinky for me if you know what I mean.”  He shot a wink at Kara, and the poor blonde felt herself start to swoon under his gaze. But then she heard a familiar voice call from the other room, and she swore her heart stopped.  “Dean, stop lying and making me look bad!”

She moved past Dean, leaving him confused and starting at Sam, who had no idea what was going on.  Jess turned to Sam. “If he’s not dating the purple haired girl, then she can’t go with you. I don’t like her.”  Sam rolled his eyes but smiled, placing a kiss on her lips before turning to Dean. “You heard her.” He shrugged, and the trio turned to see Kara nervously entering the kitchen.  Dean called out. “You alright sweet cheeks?”

Kara stood in the doorway, heart racing as she stared at the person sitting at the kitchen table, poptart half-eaten in hand.  Lyra stared, confused as to why this person was looking at her like she had seen a ghost. “What?”

Kara’s eyes filled with tears.  “It’s been ten years.” Lyra’s eyes lit up, and she got up from her chair, running over to the blonde.  Lyra ran a hand through her blonde hair, smiling into her hazel eyes. Her gaze softened as tears instantly filled and fell from her own green eyes.  “It’s you, isn’t it?”

Kara nodded, and the two of them screamed and fell into an embrace as the trio ran into the kitchen to see what the heck was going on.  Dean squinted at them. “Wait, how do you know each other?” 

Lyra pulled away long enough to scream at Dean in excitement.  “She’s my sister!! My baby sister!” She pushed Kara away for a moment to smile at her.  “You look good!”

Kara giggled between the tears.  “You look badass!”

Sam looked at Lyra, eyes wide.  “Kara, you mean she’s really your sister?”  Kara nodded, and Dean smirked. “Well that’s a hefty coincidence.” 

Kara shook her head.  “Lyra doesn’t believe in coincidence.”  Dean found himself caught under her hazel eyed gaze, and her tan skin made him want to touch her.  His thoughts were cut off when Sam sighed, looking at his watch. “I need to get going. Kara, could Lyra stay with you this weekend?  I need to go on a road trip with my brother and I think Jess would prefer if she didn’t stay here.”

Kara’s eyes lit up, and Dean’s heartbeat skipped at the sight.  “Yes of course! I’m off for the rest of the day so we can head over right now!!”  Sam smiled at Jess, who thanked him for the removal of the purple haired girl. Dean watched his friend and her supposed sister walk out of the apartment without another word to anyone but each other.  Lyra waved at Dean with a smile on her face, but only Sam noticed the gesture because Dean was busy gawking at the way Kara’s butt looked in her jeans. 

When they left, Jess sighed with relief, and moved into the kitchen to make something to eat.  Sam turned to Dean, a frown on his face. “Don’t make her into another one of your one-nighter girls.”  

Dean scoffed.  “Me? I would never.”  He looked over to Jess, seeing she was still in the kitchen out of earshot, and whispered to Sam.  “I think Lyra is better for you than this chick is.” Sam glared, and left without a word.

~That night~

Dean and Sam had left for their hunt, and Lyra was in some borrowed pajamas, sitting on Kara’s bed listening to her life stories.  The adoptive family she went to, the friends she made, and even the hope of reuniting with Sam when she got to Stanford. Lyra grinned, gripping a pillow to her chest.  

“I’m so happy for you, Kara.”  She smirked, “And… It looked like Dean was really into you.”  Kara blushed, her face scrunching up as she held back various fangirling sounds.  

“He is SOOO out of my league… but he’s SO HOT!”  She paused, trying to talk herself out of the idea, but gave up.  “What’s he like?”

Lyra chuckled.  “Dean is like, extremely outgoing and ready to go on adventures.  I’ve come to believe his core value is family, and he would do anything for his father or Sam.  It’s really sweet, considering he hides that side of him so well behind the partying and one-night stands.”

Kara sighs.  “Another bad-boy.  Of course. Just my luck.?”  

Lyra shrugged.  “He thinks love is weakness, so I don’t know.”

She slapped her pillow in frustration.  “What about you? Aren’t you even a little interested in knowing more about Sam?”

Lyra’s own face flushed red.  “Of course, but he’s taken. I’m not about ruining relationships.”

Kara shook her head.  “I’ll be honest, I’m nice to Jess because she’s dating Sam, but I don’t particularly like her.  She’s one of those popular girls whose daddy pays for everything.” Lyra scrunched her nose like a growling dog.  “I mean, she treats him well enough, but I think he could do better.” She smiled at her green-eyed sister. “And honestly, from all I’ve heard about you even just tonight, you could honestly be his soulmate.”

Lyra groaned, her eyes rolling.  “And you are certainly outgoing just enough for Dean, and a little down-to-earth would do him good.  But Dean hates love and Sam is in love.”

Kara nodded, laying down on the floor.  “It’s sad, really. How often do you find hunters your age who are also attractive?  Not many.”

Lyra looked out the window at the rising moon and frowned.  “The level of coincidence though… I can’t help but wonder what the reason is behind all this.  And I highly doubt it’s finding our soulmates.”

Kara groaned.  “Come oooonnn…”  Her eyes pleaded.  “We finally found each other… why does there have to be a reason behind everything?”  Kara watched as Lyra pushed her face into the pillow she was holding, hiding tears. Her voice came out muffled through the fabric.

“Because… all these years we were separated from our friends and each other.”  Her head popped up. “Now I suddenly find Dean as he’s headed over to see Sam, who happens to be your friend who you also just reunited with recently?”  She shook her head. “That’s way too insane to be a coincidence.”

Kara let out a breath and began braiding a strand of her hair.  Lyra pursed her lips and scooted closer to her sister. “Dean said the same demon that killed our mother killed theirs, too.”  Kara’s eyes went wide. “You can’t tell me this is just a coincidence. It’s too good to be true.”

Kara shook her head.  “What am I supposed to do?  I have two years left of my psychology major.  I can’t just leave.” The girls stared, the air tense.  

“You have to come with us, Kara.”

The long-haired blonde stood from her spot on the floor, shaking her head.  “No. I tried so hard to abandon that life. I don’t want to go back.”

Lyra’s head dropped, her green eyes looking at her pillow.  “What if Sam goes? You two seemed close.”

A corner of Kara’s lip turned up as she chuckled.  “Sam hated the family business as much as I did. He has a free ride through the rest of Law school, he wouldn’t leave that behind.  Or Jess, for that matter.” Kara glanced back at her sister and saw the pain in her eyes. Sighing, she nodded. Her heart skipped a beat thinking about traveling with Dean, and the fact that she felt dread surrounding the whole ordeal.  But she agreed anyway. “Fine. If Sam goes, I’ll go.”

Lyra inhaled deeply, nodding to herself as she tried not to panic.  She knew something bad was brewing and she didn’t want anything to do with it but knew she would be dragged into it one way or another.  So, the two got ready for bed, and readied themselves to meet with Sam and Dean in two days’ time.

~

Sam left Dean waiting in the car, and he went up to his apartment to send Lyra out.  An hour before he had texted Kara, telling her to bring Lyra back over to his place so Dean could pick her up.  When he approached the door, he jiggled the knob to find it unlocked, which wouldn’t have surprised him if the entirety of the apartment hadn’t been apparently empty.  “Jess? You here?”

He saw a plate of cookies and a note, and he smiled to himself.  He assumed she had gone to pick up Lyra herself, and that she would be back soon.  He sighed, plopping himself down onto the mattress. He knew he should text Dean, but he decided to absorb the peace and quiet for a moment.

But he felt something drip on his forehead. 

Confused, Sam opened his hazel eyes to see the petrified dead face of his girlfriend, bloody and broken on the ceiling.  He screamed “NO!” Just as she lit on fire, flames nearly encapsulating the room. Dean slammed open the door, running into the room.  “Sammy!” He looked up, seeing Jess on the ceiling, and his heart skipped a beat, his face reddening as his blood began to boil. He grabbed Sam, and pulled him towards the exit.  His eyes turned to some figures on the floor, and realized Kara and Lyra were knocked out in a dark corner, dangerously close to the flames. Dean yelled “Lyra!” which made Sam turn and see his friend and her sister groggily coming back to reality in the corner.  “Kara?!”

Dean ran over and hauled her over his shoulder.  Dean glared at Sam. “It’s too late for Jess! Get Kara!”  Eyes red and welled with tears, Sam picked up Kara and the two brothers fled the building, pulling a fire alarm on the way out to notify the other tenants.  Sam held Kara bridal style, and as they bounded down the stairs her hazel eyes opened, and a tear rolled down her cheek. “I dreamt this would happen. I didn’t think…”

Sam felt his already racing heart skip a beat.  “What?” His nightmare had become a reality, but now his best friend had experienced the same prophetic dream.  Kara opened her mouth and whispered.

“I didn’t think it would actually happen.”

To which Sam nodded, and whispered back. 

“I didn’t either.”

~

The girls sat on the hood of the Impala, watching firemen run back and forth as Sam and Dean interrogated them on what happened.  Lyra’s head hung low, her face red with embarrassment and shame. “We walked in and the yellow-eyed demon was there, just standing at the end of the bed.”  

Sam’s red eyes bore into her soul, making her retreat into her hoodie.  “And you and Dean already confirmed it was the same demon that killed our mothers?”

Kara nodded, tears long dried.  “The same one. He threw us against the wall which knocked us out, and you were there for the rest.”

Dean sighed, a growl escaping his throat.  “This son of a bitch needs to pay.” Sam paced in front of the car, making everyone nervous.  Dean took a long look at Kara to confirm she was okay before turning to his brother. “What do you want to do Sam?”

His hazel eyes moved over Dean before looking back at the flames that had consumed his girlfriend.  He felt his face flush and his throat tighten again, and he swallowed it away. “This demon seems to be behind all of this… so if we kill him, it should be over.”

Lyra glanced doubtfully at Kara, but the blonde shrugged it off.  “I’m in for some revenge. Jess was my friend too.” Dean nodded, and the trio all looked at Lyra, who was fiddling her thumbs and hiding behind her hair.  Guilt consumed her for not being able to save Jess; all her years of research were useless against demons. But the others, especially Dean, were waiting to hear if she was in on the revenge or not.  But all they got from her was silence.

Kara’s shoulders relaxed, placing a hand over her sister’s.  “It’s not your fault.” Kara and Sam shared a knowing glance, their dreams proof that it was indeed, their fault and not Lyra’s.

The green-eyed girl shook her head.  “I should have been able to do something.”  Dean shook his head, walking over to her and plopping a hand on her shoulder, gripping it tightly.  

“Trust me.  Dad has been searching for this demon for years and he’s like nothing we’ve ever hunted before.  It’s not your fault. It’s that damn demon’s fault, and we need to go kill him.”

Sam nodded.  “He’s just going to keep hurting more people if we don’t stop him.”  He couldn’t help but feel a connection to the girl, almost bonded by the tragedy. “Are you in or not?”

Wiping hidden tears away with her jacket sleeve, Lyra raised her head, taking a deep breath filled with determination.

“Let’s start by finding your father.”

 


	4. The Wendigo

The roar of the Impala going down the highway was drowned out by one of Dean’s cassette tapes blasting over the radio.  The two eldest sat up front, by Dean’s rules of ‘eldest first’, leaving Kara to sit with Sam in the back. It worked out well, for the most part.  Sam was jealous of Lyra getting shotgun, but Dean argued she was more pleasurable of a passenger than serious Sam was, and it was his car. So, there they were.  On the road to their first hotel in the town they believed John was located. 

They had been on the road for almost two days, swapping drivers and backseat napping the entire way to Colorado.  Lyra and Dean were rocking out to some Van Halen, while Kara had been staring at Dean’s beauty and Sam was flipping through their father’s notebook.  Sam shook his head, leaning over to Kara. “I just don’t understand. There’s nothing in here that explains why he would just disappear.”

Kara stopped her staring to turn to her friend, her voice low.  “My gut says it has something to do with the demon… I hate to use my sister’s words, but this is too specific to be a coincidence.  Maybe he got too close to some information?”

Dean turned down the radio and glanced back at the two through his rearview mirror.  “Find something, Sammy?”

The younger brother shook his head.  “Nothing, that’s what’s weird.” He paused, flipping through the pages.  “The only lead I’ve got is here in Colorado, and that doesn’t even tell us if he’s actually there.”  

Lyra turned in her seat, a grin plastered on her face.  “No one is invisible. We’ll find him.”

Sam sighed, the optimism appreciated but overlooked with his own worry.  “I just hope nothing bad happened, you know?”

Dean chuckled.  “Dad’s the best hunter out there.  It’s more likely he’s got something, not the other way around.”  Sam shut the notebook and sighed, hoping to all that is good that Dean was right.  It wouldn’t explain why their father wouldn’t pick up his phone, but some hope was better than none.

It only took them another hour after their conversation before they pulled into the parking lot of the hotel they were staying at.  Kara got out of the car and stretched, her arms reaching to the sky. “Man, I haven’t been on a road trip that long since I was little!”  Lyra stumbled out of the car, a little woozy since her Dramamine pill had worn off twenty minutes ago. Dean laughed at her, his smile beaming as he exited the Impala and shut the door.  “You’re such a great hunter, you can’t even handle being in a car.”

Lyra groaned.  “Shut up!” Sam exited last, his father’s notebook still in hand.  “Kara and I will grab the luggage, you get us checked in.”

Dean nodded, walking around the front of the car to pull Lyra along with him.  Kara and Sam began grabbing what little they had taken with them in duffel bags to bring into the room.  Kara looked at Sam, her hazel eyes wavering with worry. “Did you find out anything about our visions?” 

Sam shook his head. “All I have is a list of similarities.  Both of our mothers were killed by demons, we both are the youngest in our families, and we both had a prophetic vision.  Nothing new yet.” Kara sighed, and saw an angry Dean exiting the building, heading their direction. “What happened?”

Dean’s jaw clenched.  “They accidentally booked our room and can’t give it back.  The best I could do was two queens.”

Sam’s face dropped.  “How did they book our room twice?”

Dean shook his head.  “I don’t know. But now we have to share a bed.”

Kara chuckled.  “Good luck with that…”  Her head panned the parking lot and she looked curiously at Dean. “Where’s Lyra?”

Still steaming with fury, he picked up his duffel bag.  “She went to the room to lay down.”

Sam shook his head.  “How convenient. Now we get to carry her stuff for her.”

Dean rolled his eyes, picking up her bag, too.  “I’ve got it.”

The trio all had their bags and slammed the trunk shut and wandered their way into the room they would be sharing for a couple days.  Lyra laid face-up on the bed closest to the door. She heard them come in and didn’t even bother to move. “Did you get my stuff?”

Dean walked over and threw her heavy bag so that it landed over her stomach.  It hit her hard and she groaned, sitting up in a slouched position, pushing the bag to the side.  Dean smirked. “You’re welcome.” She mumbled under her breath as she unzipped the bag, pulling out her laptop and power cord to get it charged back up from the trip.

Dean tried plopping his duffel on Lyra’s bed, but she glared at him and shook her head.  “Nuh-uh. I am NOT sharing a bed with you again, that was awful.”

Kara giggled.  “Again?”

Dean growled.  “You know Sam and I are too big to share a bed, so it makes sense for one guy and one girl to share a bed so we all fit.”

Sam chuckled.  “You really think that’s a good idea?”

Lyra chuckled evilly.  “You kicked me off and stole the covers! Why don’t you share with Kara?”

Dean’s face gained a touch of red as he stammered his refusal.  “I don’t know her! That would be weird!”

Sam laughed.  “That’s never stopped you before.” 

Kara’s face flushed red, shaking her head with a smile.  “But then that means Sam must share with you, Lyra.” The girl paused, glancing over to Sam who was thoroughly enjoying this childish conversation.  She got a blush of her own but stayed stoic in front of Dean. “So?”

Sam sighed, and raised his hands.  “Okay guys, stop. I’ll put names in a bowl and we will draw for who shares the bed with who.”  Lyra crossed her arms and nodded. Dean rolled his eyes, angrily frowning. Kara sighed, and agreed.  Sam nodded, a smile on his face. “Good.”

~

Dean dug through the trunk of the car with one hand, looking for his favorite shotgun, as the other massaged his lower back.  “That was an awful idea.”

Sam rolled his neck back and forth, trying to work out a kink.  “You were right… that bed was far too small for the both of us.”

Lyra and Kara smiled at the boys while leaning up against the side of the car.  “It worked great for us.”

Dean growled.  “I think I’ll just sleep in the car tonight.” 

Lyra shrugged her shoulders, opening the passenger door to the Impala.  “I don’t care where you sleep, we need to investigate this lead.”

Dean sighed, slamming the trunk shut before taking his rightful place as the driver.  “Where are we headed again?”

Everyone hopped into the car, Sam pulling out his father’s notebook.  “Blackwater Ridge. It’s a park.”

Kara chuckled.  “I hope it has a twisty slide.”

Sam smiled, shaking his head.  “Not that kind of park. A national park, with woods and campsites.”

Kara shrugged her shoulders, a disinterested look on her face.  “Well I’m not interested anymore.”

Lyra couldn’t help but giggle at an old memory.  “I went camping once.”

Dean was about to ask how that turned out for her, but Sam spoke first.  “Well, you won’t want to camp here. There are disappearances going back almost two hundred years.”

“Let me guess…”  Dean started. “Police called them bear attacks?”

“Yeah.”  Sam nodded, looking through the notebook and his notes from the night before.  “But get this: the park rangers confirmed there hasn’t been any signs nor sighting of a bear in years.”

Lyra scrunched her eyebrows in confusion.  “How can they claim it was bears if there are none?”

“To prevent a panic, I suppose?”  Kara shrugged, and everyone nodded in agreement. 

Lyra spoke from within her thoughts.  “We know this is up our alley because of how long this has been going on.  Do we have any clues as to what it might be yet?”

Sam shook his head.  “All I know from the police reports is that the people who disappeared were all camping, they all went missing overnight, and their tents were ripped to shreds.”

Lyra nodded.  “Okay. When we’re done interviewing the park rangers I’ll do some research on the topography and lore on the area, see if that helps narrow the list.  I have a few ideas.” Sam nodded, and Dean drove them out to the park.

A park ranger was sitting in a room off to the side, talking with a young woman and a teenage boy when the group entered the building.  The smell of pine was fresh in their noses, and yells filled their ears. The woman shouted. “Doing the best we can, my ass!! You’re just sitting here while my brother is lost out there?!”

The ranger pursed his lips, his eyes moving from the distressed pair to the newcomers.  “One moment please.” He turned back to the woman, anger in his eyes. “You need to leave or we’ll call the police.”

Sam pulled out his FBI badge, entering the room.  “Actually, we are the police.”

The young woman sighed with relief.  “Thank God. Are you here to find out what really happened to my brother?”  Sam nodded, Dean following him into the room with a smile, flashing his badge quickly before stuffing it back into his pocket.

“We were sent here with the ladies behind us to check into the recent disappearances.  If a bear is responsible, these ladies will track it down and kill it. If it’s not, that’s where we come into play.”

The sitting ranger shook his head.  “You can’t kill a bear on this land, they’re protected.”

Lyra spoke from the waiting room.  “We have government permission. An animal that gets used to human flesh cannot be allowed to live, especially in a popular area such as this.  It’s a conflict of interest, we understand. But people’s safety comes first.”

Kara nodded in agreement, and the ranger sighed.  Glaring at the woman who had been yelling at him previously, he caved in.  “Fine. You can stay long enough to tell these people your side of the story.  Then you need to leave.”

The woman nodded, a slight smile on her face as she turned to Sam and Dean.  “Thank you!”

Sam turned to Dean.  “You talk to the ranger about what they found, and I’ll talk to these two.”  With a nod, Sam and Dean split up, Sam leading the two he was about to question into another room while Dean ran a series of questions through the ranger.

Kara and Lyra skimmed wildlife and topography manuals and maps while they waited for the boys to do their jobs.  Kara shook her head. “They don’t even list bears on here as a possible wildlife encounter…” she whispered.

Lyra nodded, finding nothing of real importance on the map.  She did however see a pamphlet about mines. Curiously, she picked it up.  As she read through the small booklet, a smile appeared on her face. “I think I have a lead.”

~

Everyone regrouped in front of the Impala, touching base and getting up to date.  Sam started. 

“The woman is Haley, and the teen is her younger brother Ben.  The last victim was their older brother, named Tommy. The sister said they were sleeping out in their tents when she heard the ripping of his tent and screaming.  By the time she left her tent to look, he was gone.”

Dean nodded, pitching in.  “She said it had only destroyed Tommy’s tent, right?  The ranger said when he went to search the area the morning after the incident, the whole camp was torn apart.  The claw marks and destruction could only be done by a bear, he said.”

Lyra shook her head, a sly smirk on her face.  Kara nudged her to speak next. “Or a Wendigo.”

Sam glanced curiously at Lyra, and her face heated up under his gaze.  Dean repeated her out of confusion. “A Wendigo?”

Lyra chuckled from embarrassment as she elaborated.  “Legends say that Wendigos were once human beings who were forced to turn to cannibalism, which cursed them to turn into savage, man-eating creatures.”

Sam nodded, the information sounding familiar.  “There was something about Wendigos in Dad’s journal.  What made you think of a Wendigo?”

Lyra pulled out the pamphlet she read earlier.  “Some legends reference mining accidents that might have trapped people inside, which could eventually drive someone to cannibalism.  There’s a mine nearby that had a similar accident a hundred and fifty years ago, twenty people were trapped below ground and assumed dead.”

Kara pitched in, smiling.  “That’s about the same time that these disappearances started happening!”

Dean nodded, smiling from Kara’s expression.  “Sounds solid enough to me. How do we kill it?”

Sam’s eyebrows came together as pieces of information came to him from memory.  “Fire kills them, doesn’t it?”

Lyra nodded.  “Yep. Flamethrowers are your best bet.  Although some legends also say not to kill them because then their souls are released and can infect other people with their madness, but whatever.”

Dean scoffed.  “Well that’s just ridiculous.”

Sam chuckled at his brother.  “But everything else we do is totally normal, right?”

Dean opened his mouth to fling a sarcastic reply but was cut off by Kara.  “Okay!! I suppose we should go looking in the mines?”

Lyra smiled.  “Yep. Right after we check the campsite.  Maybe there’s a trail, just in case it doesn’t live in the mines so that we don’t have to make a second trip.”

 

Kara shook her head in disappointment.  “You’re so lazy.”

Dean decided that they divide into two groups.  He paired himself with Kara and left Lyra with Sam.  Everyone got a gun and some form of fire, such as a lighter and a hairspray can or a Molotov.  Sam navigated them through the winding trails until they got to the campsite… or at least what was left of it.  The remains of the tents were blocked off with yellow police tape which the group just stepped over. Lyra followed Sam as he attempted tracking the Wendigo while Dean stood off to the side, pretending to look over the remains of the campsite while he started up a conversation with Kara.

“So…”  Dean leaned up against a tree, crossing his feet and folding his arms.  “Have you ever been camping?” Dean winced, immediately hating himself for asking such a stupid question instead of leading with a punchline or something sexy.

Kara nodded, moving her gaze from the tattered remains of the tent to Dean.  She paused before speaking, trying to compose herself under his gaze. “My first group home went camping every year.  I mean, we rented a cabin instead of using tents, so it wasn’t too bad.”

“Not too bad?”  Dean pried, an eyebrow raised.  

“Yeah.”  She shrugged. “I didn’t particularly like spending a week in the heat and humidity, without hot water for showers, and being eaten alive by mosquitoes.”

“Did you go fishing at all?”

Kara smiled, moving her gaze away towards the birds in the trees before she could get flustered under his stare, her heartbeat already going a hundred miles an hour. “Yeah.  That was the best part, really.”

Dean smirked.  “I can just imagine you all hot and sweaty, reeling in some supper.”

Kara turned towards him slowly, her eyes squinted, and pupils basically slits with confusion written all over her face as it heated up to a nice red shade. “What?”  

Dean’s smirk vanished, his eyes widening as his breath got caught in his throat.  “Did I say that out loud?”

Lyra walked over, interrupting the two of them and arguably saving Dean’s life.  “Sam thinks he found a trail.” 

Dean smiled, avoiding Kara’s glare.  “Good. Does it lead to the mines?”

Sam came up behind Lyra, nodding.  “Looks like it. Ready to go?”

Dean bolted in the direction of the mines.  “Yep!”

Sam scrunched his eyebrows in confusion, but he shrugged his shoulders and followed his brother.  Lyra stayed a few steps behind in order to gang up with Kara. “What did he say?”

Kara’s face was still red as she sighed.  “Nooooo.”

Lyra chuckled, bumping shoulders with the blonde.  “What did he sayyy?!”

Kara rubbed her cheeks with her hands, a giggle escaping her.  She whispered. “He admitted to thinking about me in a way he found sexy.”

Lyra jumped, holding back a squeal.  “I TOLD you!!! He’s totally into you.”

Kara’s smile reached from ear to ear.  “The best part was that it was an accident.  He was thinking out loud.”

Lyra nodded.  “That’s Dean for you.”

Sam’s voice called out from a few yards ahead, interrupting their conversation.  “Are you girls coming or not?” The sisters exchanged a glance before jogging to catch up to the boys.  Kara quite excitedly took a stride next to Dean in hopes that he might continue to hit on her while Lyra walked next to Sam, just hoping he wouldn’t notice her staring at him.  They were about halfway to the mines when clouds rolled in and they heard a loud rustling in the bushes.

They all halted, pulling out various weapons.  The pairs stood back-to-back as they tried pin-pointing the fast-moving object through the bushes.  Lyra swallowed, her voice shaking. “That’s definitely not a bear.”

“It’s the middle of the day, why is this thing awake?”  Dean growled.

“It’s cloudy…”  Sam pointed out.  “It’s probably dark enough for it to come out.”

The Wendigo was far too fast for any of them to fire a shot.  It would dart from bush to tree, loud shrieks filling their ears as it sized them up.  “We are so screwed…” Kara whispered, right before the creature lashed out, knocking them all over.  Sam hit his head on a rock, knocked unconscious. Dean let out a yell as he was pulled away from his flamethrower, being drug away fast through the forest.  Lyra’s weapon flung out of her hands as she fell, far out of reach. Kara held on to her pistol during the topple and sat up quickly to take aim, but the Wendigo came back and knocked her out, dragging her away before she had the chance.  The monster drug both Kara and Dean off towards the mines.

Lyra stared in the direction of the Wendigo for a few moments, her heart pounding and a ringing in her ears convincing her there had to be another monster coming any second for her, too.  But it didn’t come. She glanced around, seeing Sam still laying on the ground. She shakily stood, fear coursing through her veins, as she went over and started lightly smacking Sam on the cheeks.  “Sam… Sam!” 

Hazel eyes opened to see Lyra standing over him.  He felt the back of his head, wincing when he found the spot that was now bloody and sore from hitting the rock.  “What happened?” He sat up, looking around, panic setting in. “Where’s Dean and Kara?”

“The Wendigo took them.  Now we have to save them, too.”

Sam groaned.  “Great.” Lyra helped him to his feet, all too aware that they were alone together for the first time.  She picked up the weapons that their friends and siblings had dropped. Sam looked at her curiously as she stammered, trying to speak but just ended up pointing in the direction of the mine to tell him where to go in case he had gotten turned around while he was passed out.  

Sam took the flamethrower Dean had been holding and led the way.  He paused, deciding to talk to Lyra about something that had been bothering him since he met her.  “You don’t have to be so afraid of me you know.”

Lyra pulled up beside him, confusion written all over her face.  “Wha.. what?”

“You always act weird when Dean leaves us alone.”

Lyra shrugged her shoulders, avoiding eye contact.  “No, no…” She paused, thinking. “I mean… you are a little intimidating.”   _ Nice save _ , she thought to herself.  She couldn’t admit she had a crush on the guy after spending a mere week with him.

Sam smiled, a little chuckle coming from his throat.  “I know I’m freakishly tall, but I’m not a scary person, I promise.”  

Lyra sighed, feeling bad for being so obvious about her attempts to avoid him.  “I’m sorry…” She admitted partially. “I’ve never been good with meeting new people.”

“I thought you were the one who went up to Dean all those years ago?”  Sam noted.

Lyra nodded, an ache in her heart resurfacing that she tried to hide away.  “That was before my father died.”

Sam nodded, his lips pursed in thought.  “I’m sorry.”

Lyra shook her head.  “No, it’s okay.” Sam looked at her, wondering if he should try talking to her some more or just leave it where it was.  He decided not to say anything else.

Silence surrounded them the rest of the way to the mines.

~

Meanwhile, both Dean and Kara were bound and hanging from the ceiling in a dark, damp, cold cavern.  A slow, constant drip of water woke up Kara, who groaned when she saw Dean just as tied up as her. Dean smiled at her, optimism gracing his features.  “Hey cutie.”

She sighed.  “Dean, we are in a serious situation right now.”

“So what?  Can’t I have a little fun?”  Dean tried wiggling his arms to reach for the knife in his pocket, to no avail.

“You realize our lives are in those two idiot’s hands?”  Kara spoke, her voice low and demanding. 

Dean grunted as he tried reaching for his knife again.  “Yeah…” He sighed, relaxing when he realized he wasn’t going to get his weapon anytime soon.  “That’s why I’m making a plan.”

“Oh yeah?”

Dean shrugged his shoulders.  “I have a knife in my pocket. If I can reach it, I could cut us free.”

Kara chuckled.  “And how’s that going?” 

Dean paused, taking a moment to salute his pride good-bye.  “Not so good.” 

Kara groaned.  “This is it. I’m going to die.”

Dean shook his head.  “You haven’t even kissed me yet; you can’t die.”

Kara stammered, thankful the darkness of the cave hid her blush.  “Who says I want to kiss you?!”

Dean gasped, pretending to be hurt.  He smirked, not that she could see it.  “That’s what they all say. Right before they ask me to kiss ‘em.”

Movement beside them made them stop their bickering, and a tired, dry male voice came to their ears.  “H-hello?”

Dean turned his head towards the sound.  “Tommy? Is that you?”

The man coughed, every word taking all his energy.  “Yes. Please tell me… someone… knows you’re here?”

Kara nodded, glancing worriedly at Dean.  “Our friends will be here any minute to rescue us.”

Tommy sighed.  “Thank God.” His relief was cut short when they all heard an all too familiar shriek come from a nearby tunnel.  “Oh no…” He swallowed in fear. “It’s coming…”

Dean tried once again to reach his knife, almost dislocating his shoulder in the process.  “Just stay quiet!”

The scrape of claws filled their ears along with another shriek as the Wendigo wandered through the tunnels of the mine, the sounds becoming louder as it came straight for them.  Kara’s breaths came quicker, trying her hardest not to scream out in fear. Dean kept stretching, the tips of his fingers just brushing against the handle of the knife. Tommy had no energy left and made no noise at all.

The Wendigo entered the cavern, and everyone was still.  They could all hear it walking around and feel it’s cloudy gaze land on each of them.  Kara shivered as it came close to her, it’s foul breath breathing on her cheek. She clenched her eyes shut, every ounce of courage in her body willing her to stay still.

Suddenly they heard the sound of running feet and familiar yells.  The Wendigo paused, listening for a moment before screeching in Kara’s ear, making her blood run cold, running off towards the disturbance in the lair.  Kara choked, a sob coming from her as the fear took over. Dean’s heart dropped, and he called out to her.

“Hey hey, shhh.  It’s okay!” They heard a yell from a familiar female voice just before more shrieks filled the air.  This time, Dean could tell they landed a blow with the flamethrower. It wasn’t even a minute later when the shrieks ceased, and he sighed.  They had killed the Wendigo. He glanced over to Kara just as their friends entered the cave, blinding everyone with their flashlights. But he was sure he saw her smile at him.

~

“Well that sucked.”  Dean mumbled, leaning against the Impala as he cracked open a beer.

Lyra nodded, her hands still shaky from the experience and unable to open her beer.  “If I wasn’t a hunter, I’d say I never want to do that again.”

Kara took a deep breath and sighed, agreeing with her sister.  “Now I understand why one was able to get dad.” She took a sip of her beer before shaking her head.  “Hell, one almost got  _ me _ .”

Sam chuckled, opening Lyra’s beer for her. “But it didn’t.  And we saved Tommy, too.”

Lyra smiled up at Sam. “Thanks.”

Dean sent a secret wink to Sam, who just rolled his eyes in reply.  “So…” Sam diverted. “Where are we going next?”

Dean shrugged.  “No clue. Suppose without any leads on Dad’s location, we just do what we do best and go hunt stuff.”

Kara nodded.  “Sounds good!”  She tilted her beer towards Dean, and he clinked it with his own.

The group chatted and chilled out under the forest canopy, delighted their mission was a success, but bummed they hadn’t found anything relating to John Winchester.  Lyra set her beer down on the hood of the car and pulled out her camera. “Hey guys, let’s take a picture!” 

Kara jumped with excitement.  “That’s a great idea!!” She exclaimed.

Sam sighed, setting his beer down and pulling a reluctant Dean in as Lyra extended her arm, trying her best to fit everyone into the shot.  As Lyra said ‘cheese’, Dean pulled his favorite blue-steel and Sam made a dorky duckface, both of the girls too excited to think of anything but a smile.  Lyra snapped the shot and stepped back, looking it over, a cute little laugh escaping her as she saw the boys’ faces on the preview screen. “This is great!  Thanks guys; our first mission as a team!”

Lyra tilted the camera toward Kara, who immediately laughed.  “I want a copy of that!”

The group had a good laugh as they all reviewed the photo, for a moment forgetting that anyone’s lives had been in danger only a half-hour earlier.  Their first mission proved successful; they had high hopes for the future. Friendships grew stronger and crushes started taking hold. 

Such bonds would find themselves to be unbreakable, or so they hoped.

 


	5. Skin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A couple of awkward moments before the hunters dive into a skin walkers case!

Sam and Lyra squinted as the morning sun shone in their eyes, the visors in the Impala utterly incapable of shielding their eyes as they pulled into a parking lot.  Their blonde siblings had decided they were sleeping in today, and so Sam decided to pay a visit to the nearest library with Lyra in tow. It was a Saturday morning, and the parking lot was empty except for them.  Lyra glanced at the library doors, a hand shielding her eyes from the sun. “Are you sure they’re even open?” 

Sam shook his head, a tired smile on his face.  “Nope.” He ignored the groan from Lyra as he put the Impala in park and turned off the ignition.  “We can just pick the lock if it isn’t.”

The pair got out of the vehicle with a stretch, the sun casting their shadows onto the building.  Lyra followed Sam as he walked up to the door, giving it a tug and glancing back surprisingly as it opened.  The bell on the door indicating their arrival, an older lady looked up from a book where she sat in a chair behind the checkout desk.  “Good morning. I don’t see folks in here this early very often.”

Lyra and Sam smiled at the librarian, Lyra stopping to lean on the counter.  “I was shocked you were even open, being a weekend.”

The lady smiled.  “I believe libraries should be open all the time, so that nobody is denied knowledge when they feel the need to seek it.”

Sam chuckled to himself, slipping away to the historical section, tuning out Lyra’s chatting as he searched the walls of books for anything to do with supernatural or ancient folklore.  They weren’t working on a case right now, but Sam had an affinity for searching out new information to absorb. He had pulled out a pile of ten books before Lyra eventually joined him. He raised an eyebrow at her.  “You were quite the chatty bird.”

Lyra rolled her eyes, looking around at the various books the shelves.  “We’re here at an odd time of day and week, I didn’t want her to think we were weirdos.”

Sam glanced at her with pity.  “But we are weirdos.”

Lyra shot a glare.  “Nobody needs to know that!”  Sam just smiled, continuing to search through the old books.  Lyra wandered down the row before stopping, her voice causing Sam to look up.  “Man, I almost forgot about this book! I love this one!”

Eyebrows raised in curiosity, Sam abandoned his place on the bookshelf to walk over to Lyra, taking the book out of her hands and looking it over.  The excerpt on the back made him frown, his eyebrows scrunching. “Isn’t this…” Opening the book to a random page in the middle, one graphic sentence confirmed his suspicions.  He closed the book quickly, eyes wide as he glanced at Lyra. “This is erotica?”

He had to hold back a chuckle as Lyra’s face flushed bright red, her eyes avoiding his.  She stammered. “I mean… Kara!! Kara said, I would probably love that book, probably.” Sam’s lips curved up in a smile as he watched her fluster.  “I don’t read porn.” He stared doubtfully with a wide grin as her arms folded and eyebrows scrunched. “Not that it would be, be a bad thing, you know, not like it’s it’s it’s forbidden or something, if I read, read porn.  You know what how how about we just, yeah.”

Sam’s chest shuddered with held back laughter as Lyra pulled the book from his hand and walked back to the table, audibly pulling back a chair and beginning the research through the books Sam had pulled off the shelves.  All he could do was shake his head, second hand embarrassment flooding though his body. She was so adorable sometimes, he thought to himself. A red tinge made its way on his cheeks as the thought crossed his mind. He blinked in surprise, pushing the thought away as he forced himself back to the bookshelf he had been searching previously.  

Lyra took a deep breath and tried her best to pretend she hadn’t just discussed porn with her crush, burying her nose deep in a book.

The two combed through the old texts and took notes on things that peaked their interest.  Common enemies like vampires and werewolves took most of the space in the lore books, but once in a while they would stumble on a new God or creature that would catch their attention and require one of them to get up and find more books on the specific subject.  

At one point, Lyra’s studying had ceased as Sam’s foot tapped against her leg under the table.  Her heart rate skyrocketed as she tried looking at Sam over the top of her glasses without moving her head.  He was focused on his book and must not have even realized he had touched her. She tried ignoring the touch, her face lightly flushing red as she tried continuing looking through her book.  It almost worked until a few minutes later, Sam started tapping his foot against her leg. She subtly glanced up again, and he hadn’t moved except to turn the page. She chewed on her lip, not knowing if she should suffer in silence or tell him to move.  God, she wished she wasn’t attracted to him.

On the other side of the table, Sam was looking at his book, but his mind was wandering.  He thought about Jess, mostly how she was nothing like Lyra. So why did he like Lyra so much?  He could easily see himself with her romantically. Guilt ate at him for even thinking it, so soon after Jessica’s death.  He glanced up from his book to look at Lyra, and saw her face was red and her fingers were tapping a pencil on the table.

“What has you all worked up now?”  Sam joked. His smile disappeared as she glanced up at him, green eyes apologetic.

“That’s my leg.”

Sam glanced under the table, realizing the object he had been tapping his foot on this past hour and a half had been her leg, and not the tables.  He quickly slid his feet back to his side of the table, a blush rising on his cheeks. “I’m sorry… I didn’t realize.” He muttered. Lyra simply nodded, afraid to speak in case she made herself look like an idiot again.  Sam could feel the heat in his ears as he rubbed his chin out of embarrassment. He glanced at his watch, and realized it was almost noon.

His stomach rumbled almost instantly, and he sighed.  Gathering the courage to bother Lyra again, even with a tint of red still visible on his face, he broke the silence of the library.  “Do we need to check out any of these books?” A smile crept on his face. “I think we should probably head back before Dean decides to eat Kara.”

Lyra chuckled, pushing some of her purple hair out of her face before shutting the book she was reading through.  “I think I got everything interesting written down from these. We can go.”

Sam nodded, helping Lyra put the books back in their rightful places on the shelves before grabbing their notebooks and heading towards the door.  The librarian was still there, this time munching on an apple as she read through another book. Looking up from the text, she spoke. “Get what you were looking for?”

Sam nodded, being polite with a smile.  “And then some. Thank you for letting us use your library.”

The librarian nodded, her watchful eye spotting how Lyra watched Sam very carefully with soft eyes.  Her eyes and mouth smiled as she glanced between the two of them. “You’re a very lovely couple.”

Sam and Lyra’s friendly smiles dropped, and the two stared wide eyed at the librarian.  Lyra and Sam exchanged a brief startled glance before Lyra shook her head, Sam shifting his stance and running a hand through his hair.  Lyra stammered. “Oh, no… we aren’t, no…”

The librarian raised an eyebrow.  “Oh? I would have sworn...” Sam’s eyes landed on a flustered Lyra for a moment before turning back to the librarian.

“We’re really just friends.  She’s my brother’s best friend, actually, so.”

The lady chuckled.  “Sure, okay.”

Lyra huffed.  “We’ve, we’ve only known each other for like, a month.”

Sam shrugged his shoulders.  “And my friend is, is HER sister.”

Lyra nodded.  “Very compli-complicated.”

The lady behind the desk just grinned, her eyes shining with a higher knowledge and clearly hadn’t believed a word they had said.  Sam tried glancing at Lyra calmly, only to get flustered when he saw her face was red. “We should, uh, we should go?”

Lyra met his eyes briefly before looking down at the ground, eyebrows raised in frustration.  “Yep.”

The librarian waved, smirking as they hustled out of there.  The bell dinged as the door shut, and she leaned back to look out the window, watching with a sigh as they stiffly got into the car and drove away without a glance or a word to each other.  

Taking a bite of her apple, she smiled to herself.  “Not a couple,  _ yet _ .”

**~**

Kara wandered the chilled aisles of a gas station, filling her arms with various bags of junk food and bottles of things to drink as she went.  Sam and Lyra had been gone all morning, and when they eventually came back, without any pie, Dean threw a tantrum similarly to that of a two-year-old.  Throwing Kara into the Impala, he drove the two of them to the nearest gas station to pick up some ‘real’ food.

Kara dropped her pile onto the checkout counter before scanning around for Dean.  She couldn’t see him anywhere. “Dean?” She called out.

“Yeah!”  Signaling to the cashier that she was going to be a minute, she followed the voice and found Dean in the back of the store, crouched in front of a magazine rack.  She had to force herself to move her eyes away from the way his butt seemed to want to burst from his jeans in that position. She cursed herself for even noticing, tilting her head, trying to get a look at what he was flipping through instead. 

“I got everything you wanted and more, ready to go?”

Dean smiled, pulling a magazine from the end of the rack before standing back up.  “Now I am!”

Kara’s eyebrows raised, seeing the latest issue of ‘Busty Asian Beauties’ in his hand.  She willed away a blush. She knew that was his favorite but didn’t want to admit to knowing such.  “Are you kidding me?”

“What?”  Dean shrugged his shoulders, slipping the object behind his back.  He played it cool but was a little embarrassed that Kara saw him with his intimate book.  He wanted to get closer to Kara but, not, THAT close…

Kara scoffed.  “Don’t lie to me, I saw it.”

“So what?  I like my porn, I’m a guy.  Huge surprise.” A sly little smirk crawled on his face as he reverted into his casual flirt mode.  “Don’t you like your porn?” Dean internally kicked himself for the lame remark, but soon found himself holding back a chuckle as he saw her flustered reaction.

Kara’s jaw dropped, shock written all over her face as she crossed her arms and took a step away from Dean.  “Wha-what?! No!”

Dean’s smirk grew.  He wanted to play with her a little more, to get her to blush.  He loved that blush of hers. Pulling the magazine out from behind his back, he opened it to a random page, shoving the random image in her face.  “What, Asians not your type?”

Kara squeaked, pushing the magazine away.  “More like women… women aren’t my type.” Dean laughed as her face flushed a bright shade of red.  Exactly the reaction he was hoping for! Her voice raised. “Don’t flaunt that around like it’s something to be proud of!”

Dean started walking away from her, headed towards the checkout counter, his goal complete.  “I don’t understand why it’s such a big deal.”

Kara followed him, pinching the bridge of her nose.  “Because it’s indecent! You could have waited to buy that when you were by yourself.”

Dean groaned.  “But that means making another entire trip!  I’m too lazy to do that.” Kara grumbled under her breath, watching as he proudly added his porno magazine on top of the pile of check-out things.  

The clerk behind the desk seemed slightly amused, an almost nonexistent smile on his face as he started scanning items.  “Nice choice.” He commented as he scanned Dean’s magazine. Dean whipped his head back to look at Kara, a smug grin of pride on his face.  Turning back to the items, Dean’s eyes landed on the pie Kara had picked out. He grabbed it, turning back to the blonde.

“This isn’t apple.”

The cashier continued to check out the other items.  “I’m sorry, sir. We’re all out of apple pie.”

Kara rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips and leaning heavily on one leg.  “What he said.”

Dean’s judgmental eyes continued to glare down at Kara.  “What did they have left?”

“Lemon, Blueberry, and Chocolate.”

“And you picked chocolate over blueberry?!”

Kara folded her arms, eyebrows raised nonchalantly as she responded.  “You always pick apple pie, so when they didn’t have apple, thank GOD by the way, I figured you wouldn’t care. And since I wanted a slice of this one since you literally dragged me here to get it, that I would pick one I would enjoy too.”

Dean shook his head, hand upside down in the air as a sign of confusion. When in reality his next words were meant to be taken as a joke. “Who said you were getting any?”

Kara gasped, taking his statement seriously.  She did NOT get dressed only to end up not getting any pie.  “Then how about I buy the chocolate pie and YOU go get the blueberry?”

“Will you share some of the chocolate, because I still want some if you’re going to get it.”  Dean’s joking only pissed Kara off even further. Their simple trip for food was turning into a brawl.  The cashier was grinning from ear to ear now.

“Then why don’t we jut get ALL the pies?”  Kara snapped. She was hungry, her patience thin, and just wanted to go back to the hotel for some more sleep.  “I know Lyra would love some of the lemon; that’s her favorite.”

“But that’s kind of expensive to get all three pies, don’t you think?”

Kara was baffled by the sheer resemblance Dean had to a toddler when it came to his pies.  How did she ever fall for this guy?! “Then just go pick which one you want!” She finally ordered.  Dean ran a hand through his hair, taking the pie with him as he shuffled off in silence. He looked at the pies, and decided he wanted to show affection in the only way he knew how; with pie.  A few minutes later he came back with all three pies, setting them down on the counter with an agitated huff, spewing his best lie.

“I couldn’t leave them there, they all looked good.”

Kara chuckled, a little pissed but just happy he had finally decided.  His pouty face made her anger ebb away, and she found herself simply wanting him all over again.  Dean looked up to see the cashier with a pleased smile on his face and looked him over out of curiosity.  “What’s so funny?”

“Oh, you two bicker like an old married couple.  It’s really something to watch.”

Dean and Kara both instantly looked away in opposite directions, Dean rubbing his scruff and Kara fanning her face as their faces both gained quite a noticeable shade of red. 

Dean couldn’t help but think to himself.  He would trade all the pie in the world to be her significant other, with that adorable blushing face he knew she had right now, but couldn’t see.  He ignored the cashier and swiped his credit card, his mind wandering to the comment. They both thought to themselves… did they really seem like that much of a couple?  

Daydreaming as the transaction was pending, Dean wondered how it would feel to run his fingers though her hair, to hold her close and fall asleep with her in his arms.  These thoughts were broken as the transaction completed and the cashier opened his stupid mouth once more.

“Don’t tell me you two aren’t even dating yet?”

“Time to go.”  His train of thought ruined by the threat of Kara seeing him blush, Dean hurried out of the building. Kara glaring at the cashier as she followed, flipping him off as the door shut behind her.  Kara got in the passenger’s seat of the car while Dean threw the groceries in the back. Shutting the door, he took a moment to lean against his precious car, trying to calm his thoughts. Kara was one of the most beautiful and intelligent women he had ever met and cursed the circumstances that made her his brother’s best friend, of all people.  She was off limits according to the bro-code but couldn’t help his wandering mind from imagining otherwise, in a wonderfully Rated R kind of way.

Once Dean got in the car, Kara avoided looking at him the entire ten-minute ride back as her mind made its way into the corners of her imagination.  Dean was such a childish playboy, there was no way that relationship would ever work out. But damn if she didn’t want to try it anyway. His hands were remarkably soft, and she wondered how skilled he might be at using them…

In fact, she was so lost in her thoughts that she was oblivious to the tent he was pitching in his pants.  She was startled out of her thoughts when she heard the car door slam, blinking back into reality to see they had made it to their destination and Dean was already making his way inside with well-placed grocery bags.  She looked in the back to see he had grabbed everything and just shrugged, getting out of the car she had just imagined herself and Dean doing things in and moseyed inside soon after, clueless to the fact that Dean had been thinking the exact same thing.

In the end, Dean was just lucky that Sam and Lyra were too busy watching TV together to see him slip into the bathroom to take care of his problem.

He didn’t even need his magazine.

**~**

About a week had flown by, the group driving across the country hitting the latest local newspapers for anything abnormal they could go investigate, and nothing had caught anyone’s attention.  That was, until Sam got an email from a college friend about an old buddy who was arrested for a murder he didn’t commit. Apparently, the evidence was strong against this guy, and even though Dean and the girls tried telling Sam it didn’t sound like their type of gig, he insisted they check it out.

So here they were, following Sam as they knocked on his friend’s door.

A cute blonde girl answered.  Dean ogling as she leaned in for a hug from Sam.  He introduced her as Becky, to which Dean rushed in for a handshake before either of the Magnums could exchange a simple hello.  Kara rolled her eyes at Dean before she smiled excitedly. Becky was an old friend of hers, as well. “Oh, Becky!!! Hi!”

“Kara! It’s nice to see you, what a lovely surprise!”  

“I got your email.”  Sam started, Becky welcoming them into the house.

“I didn’t think you would come all the way out here though.”  She glanced curiously at Lyra as she hesitated before coming inside to a stranger’s home.

“We’re here to help however we can.”

Becky nodded, letting them all in before settling down in the kitchen. “So, tell us what happened?”  Sam started.

“Well, um…”  Kara stepped forward, offering a kind hand to hold as she told the story, which was gratefully accepted by the girl.  Her brother Zach was being tried for murdering his girlfriend. “Zach came home, and he found Emily tied to a chair. She was beaten up and bloody and wasn’t breathing, so he called 911 and the police showed up and they arrested him.  Unfortunately, Emily didn’t make it.”

Dean shrugged.  “Why would they do that?”

Becky squeezed Kara’s hand.  “They think he did it. But the only way Zach could have killed Emily was if he was in two places at once.”

Sam’s eyebrows scrunched, glancing over at Dean who had a similar curiously confused expression, shifting his feet to lean closer to the blonde, they listened.

“You see, the police got footage from a security tape across the street.  It shows him coming home at 10:30. Now Emily was killed just after that. But I SWEAR he was here with me having a few beers until at least after midnight.”

Sam nodded.  “Maybe we could go see the crime scene at Zach’s house?”  He glanced over to Lyra, who shook her head in agreement.

Becky dropped her gaze, unsure of the idea.  “But, why? What could you do?”

“Me?  Well not much but you see, Dean here is a cop.”  Sam smiled as Becky turned hopefully to Dean, who gave an embarrassed chuckle. 

Kara glared, telling Dean to stop being suspicious and speak.  “Detective, actually.”

Becky nodded.  “From where?”

Dean’s eyes scanned the others for any helpful information but found none.  In a slight panic, he blurted out. “Bisby Arizona.” He could see Lyra flinch at his choice of town.  “I’m off duty right now.”

Becky nodded, turning to Kara before shaking her head.  “It’s so nice to offer guys but, you know, I just don’t know.”

She turned her attention back to Sam as he tried convincing her.  “I know Zac didn’t do this. Now we have to find a way to prove that he’s innocent.”

With Kara giving a final squeeze of her hand, Becky sighed, giving in.  “Okay. I’ll go get the keys.”

As Becky walked off to a different room of the house, Dean groaned.  “Sam, this really doesn’t sound like our kind of problem.”

Kara scoffed.  “Why not?”

“We’ve looked into less.”  Lyra added, arms folded.

Sam raised his eyebrows at Dean, his palms turned towards him as an invitation for an argument, but Dean could only purse his lips in annoyance.  The girls were right.

“Fine.”

~

Paying no attention to the yellow tape across the lawn and the door, the group plus Becky broke into the house.  Blood was splattered everywhere. The familiar sting of iron hung in the air, almost musty. Sam and Dean looked around.

Jiggling the door handle, Dean sighed.  “There’s no sign of a break in, she must have known the attacker.”  He turned to Becky. “Is there anything else weird that might have happened before this that you can think of?”

Becky fiddled with her necklace, eyebrows scrunched together as she searched her mind for clues.  “Actually, yeah. About a week before, someone broke in and stole some of Zac’s clothes. Nothing else was missing.”

Sam poked his head outside, looking at the dog that would not stop barking at them with a frown.  Becky crossed her arms. “Yeah, that poor dog. He was the nicest thing until this happened.”

“So the dog went psycho about the time of the murder?”  Dean pulled his head from inside the fridge, closing it with a guilty look.  He had been looking for a drink.

Sam shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose.  “Dogs can have a heightened sense of the paranormal.” He saw Lyra and Kara nodding in agreement.  “So maybe this is our kind of problem?”

Dean shook his head, feet firmly planted like his opinion on this case.  “No.”

Lyra groaned, shifting her weight from one leg to the other.  “Well, it doesn’t look like there are any clues here. Maybe we should go back and look at the security tape?”

Kara led Becky out of the house, an arm wrapped around her.  “Good idea. Let’s get out of here.”

~

Dean and Sam sat around a computer screen, watching the security tape as it played back on one of Becky’s computers.  Kara and Lyra stood off to the back, chatting with Becky. They were watching who appeared to be Zach walking towards the house.  A flash on the screen nearly made Sam jump, as he hit the rewind quick. “Hey Beck, got any beer?”

Becky nodded, a smile on her face as she adjusted her shirt.  “Yeah. Be right back.”

As the blonde college girl left the room, Sam turned around in his chair to look at the Magnums.  In a whispered voice he beckoned. “Come look, quick.”

The girls closed in around the computer, Dean’s interest piqued as Sam hit the play button.  “Take a look at this, his eyes…” The eyes flashed white almost too quickly to be seen, so Sam paused and went a few frames back, where they could clearly see the eyes in a picture.

“That’s unlike any camera glare I’ve ever seen.”  Kara folded her arms, shaking her head.

Lyra scratched at her head.  “So, what, Zac has an evil double?”

“Or a doppleganger?”  Dean raised his eyebrows, taking his feet off the table.

“That would sure explain how he was two places at once.”  Sam added, rubbing his chin deep in thought. He hit play, and they watched a little longer before Lyra pointed to the screen as it hit 1am, when the real Zach came home.

“The video tape sees him coming in but never coming out.”

Dean stood up just as Becky came in with a pack of beers.  “Looks like we’re checking around back next.” He stated nonchalantly, while taking a beer from the case and smirking at Sam without an ounce of regret.  “After I finish my beer.”

~

After a round of beers, the hunters were on their way to Zach’s to check around out back of the house to see if they could find any evidence.  Of course, they found nothing. But it wasn’t long before an ambulance caught their attention, flying through the streets. On a hunch, the group decided to check it out.

It was another murder.  Kara had the idea to check around back where the police weren’t standing watch, joined by Sam and Lyra while Dean went around front to ask questions about what had happened.

Lyra was digging through the dumpster, Kara was checking around the windowsills, and Sam was searching the alleyway.  One after another, they would pop up with nothing. Until Sam went to lean on the light post, only to find a streak of blood.  He called everyone over, pointing to the dried smudge.

“Blood.”

Lyra tilted her head, examining the spot.  “So we know he came this way.”

Kara shook her arms, glancing around.  “Yeah, but there’s nothing else. It’s a dead end.”

Their heads turned as Dean appeared from around the front of the house, coming towards them.  “Remember how I said this wasn’t our kind of problem? Definitely our kind of problem.”

“I was just talking to the patrol officer who was first on the scene and apparently the dude was driving home from a business trip when his wife was attacked.” 

“So he was in two places at once?” Sam perked up.  

“Exactly.”  Dean starts.  “Then he sees himself in the house and police say he’s a nutjob.”

“Two dark doubles attacking loved ones in exactly the same way.”  Kara muttered.

“It could be the same thing doing it too.”  Dean theorized.

“Shapeshifter, maybe?”  Lyra suggested, shrugging her shoulders.  “Something that can make itself look like anyone?”

“Every culture has its own shapeshifter lore.  Creatures that can transform themselves into other creatures or people.”  Kara pitched, looking around at passing people with suspicion.

“Well I found evidence of something leaving the back of this building…” Sam said pointing to the pole again.

“But the trail just disappears.  Maybe it can fly?” Kara guessed with a smile.

Sam, Dean and Kara stared at the pole, heads tilted as they thought about the problem at hand.  Lyra interrupted their thoughts from a few steps behind them. “Well there is another way to go.”  The three turned their heads, eyes first falling on Lyra before moving down to the object she was pointing at.  It was the sewer drain. “Down.”

Kara’s voice heightened as she connected the dots.  “I bet this pipe runs down by Zach’s house too!”

Dean flashed her a smile.  “I think you’re right.”

They paused, excitement being replaced with disgust, realizing there was only one way to find out.  They all groaned.

And down they went.

~

Water dripped from the ceiling and splashed up from the ground as each person dropped into the tunnel.  The faint squeak of a rat echoed in the tight chambers. It was musty, dark, and stank to high heaven.

Walking through the maze of tunnels, the group followed in single-file.  Kara lead the group, stopping as she gagged, trying not to heave. “Ugh, disgusting… guys, look at this.”

She walked past the object in question, pointing her flashlight at it so the others could see it.  Lyra covered her mouth. Dean knelt to poke the blob with his knife. Sam asked, “Is that slimy skin?”

Everyone groaned, their stomachs churning and threatening to spill their contents.  Dean looked up at Sam. “I just had a sick thought… maybe when this shapeshifter changes shape… it sheds.”

Everyone heard Lyra’s stomach flip.  “I think I’m gunna throw up.”

Dean stood, wiping off his knife as he chuckled at Lyra’s weak stomach.  “If there’s one thing Dad taught me well, it’s that no matter what kind of shapeshifter…”

Sam interrupted his brother.  “A silver bullet to the heart will do the trick.”

“That’s right!”

They were filled with determination.  “Let’s get this monster.”

~

They had been searching the underground tunnels together for about an hour when Lyra spotted something.  “I think we’re getting close to its lair.” She muttered.

“How do you know?”  Sam asked, craning his neck to glance at her over his shoulder.

“Because there is another puke-inducing pile of slime next to your face on that pipe.”  She said with a small chuckle.

Kara spun around, pointing her flashlight at the fleshy lump and staring with a contorted face.  Sam backed into the wall behind him trying to get away from it. “Oh god…”

Dean sighed.  “There’s more on the ground just up ahead too… with some clothes.”

Kara huffed.  “Who knows how many murders this thing has gotten away with.”

While everyone was looking at the clothes, something crept up from behind the green-eyed Winchester.  Kara glanced up, the movement catching her eye. A white eyed man was staring back at her, arm up ready to hit Dean over the head.  “DEAN!”

Dean spun around, blocking the attack with his arm.  His shirt ripped and blood trickled from the wound. Nobody moved as the creature ran.  Dean glared at them. “Just get the son of a bitch!”

Sam sprinted after the monster.  Chasing it down the nearly pitch-black corridor, following as it opened and escaped out through a manhole.  Climbing the ladder, he looked around, seeing it already far off, disappearing as it ran down an alleyway out of sight.

Sam took a moment to catch his breath as Lyra and Kara pushed Dean out of the hole, his arm throbbing.  Dean looked at Sam expectedly. “I couldn’t catch him, but I have an idea which direction he went.”

Dean sighed, dropping his head for a moment before standing tall.  “Let’s split up then.”

In the general direction the shapeshifter went, the four split up down different streets and ran, scanning alleyways and streets, cars and people for a sign of the man.  Problem was, if it didn’t shed, they didn’t have a trail, and if it shed, they wouldn’t know what it looked like anymore. The sun set below the horizon and they were searching in darkness before Sam, Lyra and Dean ended up intersecting each other, far from the starting point.  

“Anything?!”  Lyra’s shoulders dropped, and Sam shook his head. Dean sighed.  “Alright. Anyone know where Kara is?”

Lyra took a deep breath, trying to get her breathing back to regular.  “It’s been a while. She’ll find us.”

Sam nodded, running his hand through his hair.  “Let’s get back to the car. Maybe she’s already there.”

Sam lead the group, crossing the street towards the car.  Lyra close behind, Dean help up the rear of the line, staying a few steps back, watching with an unusual gleam in his eye.  Neither one saw his eyes flash white, a smirk on his face as a car passed. 

He wasn’t Dean anymore.

When the three of them got back to the car, Kara was nowhere to be seen.  Dean shakes his head, asking for the keys. Sam gives Dean a weird look before throwing him the keys, which he used to open the trunk of the car.  Lyra was leaning absentmindedly against the car when Sam pulls out his gun, pointing it at Dean. “Whoa, what the Hell Sam?!”

Dean raises his hands slowly as Sam’s feet plant squared, firm on the ground and ready to shoot.  “He caught the keys with his left arm… that’s the one that was injured.”

Dean scoffed, glancing at Lyra.  “So what, it’s better now. Tell Sam to knock it off.”  Lyra shook her head, confused and heart racing. Sam swallowed hard, unable to pull the trigger.  “Come on. You know it’s me, Sam.”

Sam could only shake his head, his hands starting to shake.  “I can’t be so sure.”

Like a flash of lightning, Dean sprung forward and knocked the gun out of Sam’s hand.  With a swift elbow to the face, Sam was down and out. Lyra jumped on Dean, trying to wrestle him, but the shifter had gained Dean’s strength along with his looks.  He flung her off him, the crack as her head hitting the concrete sidewalk being the last thing she heard before she blacked out. Fake Dean picked up the gun, stuffing it in his pants before dragging the limp hunters into his lair.

~

About a half hour later, Kara had made her way back to the Impala with her friends nowhere to be seen.  She glanced around, head turning every which way. “Well where the heck…” She thought she had taken a long time searching and was sure they were going to be done and waiting for her, ready to yell at her for taking so long.  Leaning up against the vehicle, she played on her phone, shooting a text to Lyra. Ten minutes passed without an answer. She contemplated staying at the car and waiting for them to come back, but it only took one sideways glance from an unfamiliar man to cause her unease.  Shaking her head, she decided it would be a better idea to go back to Becky’s house and wait it out there. After all, Lyra would get her text eventually.

~

Lyra’s eyes opened.  Everything was blurry.  Her head was splitting with pain.  Her arm instinctively reached for her head, but she found she could not move her arms.  Blinking some more, her eyes cleared. She saw pipes and instantly remembered what had happened, a groan escaping her.  She deduced that she must be in the shapeshifter’s lair…

Her thoughts were broken by a familiar voice right beside her.  “Lyra?” She looked to her side, her heart simultaneously jumping only to sink when she saw Sam, who was also tied up and immobile.  “Are you okay?” He whispered.

Lyra shrugged with as much movement as she could manage, trying to play it off with the corner of her lip turned up in a half-smile.  “I definitely have a concussion.” 

Sam frowned.  His voice hoarse with anger.  “There’s blood on your face. What did he do to you?”

“Um.”  Lyra closed her eyes, trying to think through the headache.  “I think my head hit the concrete."

Sam shook his head, his eyes clouded in worry.  He opened his mouth to ask more questions but was cut off when they heard footsteps coming hear them.  Their pulses quickened as shapeshifter Dean entered into view, a smug look on his face. He leaned close to Sam, glaring for a moment before suddenly punching him in the face.  

Sam shakes his head, a new cut bleeding on his lip.  He stares daggers into the imposter. “Where is Dean?”

“I wouldn’t worry about him, I’d worry about you.”  The shapeshifter walks to the other side of the room, picking up a knife and picking under his fingernails with it.  “I swear the more I learn about you and your family… I thought I came from a bad background. He’s sure got issues with you, Sam.”  Sam’s eyes never left the knife. “You got to go to college and he had to stay home. I mean,  _ I _ had to stay home with dad.  You think I didn’t have dreams?”

Sam’s face looked as if he had smelled something rotten.  This monster was getting on his nerves. “Where is my brother?”

“Your brother, hmm.”  The shifter neared them, tossing the knife in the air.  “See deep down, I’m just jealous. You’ve got friends. You could have a life.  Me? I know I’m a freak and sooner or later everyone is going to leave me. You left.”  He kneeled, touching the knife to Lyra’s throat, her eyes wide. “Even Lyra left, once.  Hell, I did everything dad asked me to and whoo, he left me too. Left me with your sorry ass.”

Sam and Lyra kept quiet, their fear-stricken faces giving him a feeling of power.  “But still this life, it’s not without its perks. I meet the nicest people. Like little becky.  And Kara.” He paused, admiring the fierce looks from the tied-up hunters. “You know Dean would bang ‘em if he had the chance.”

Sam and Lyra exchanged a confused glance just before Lyra’s phone buzzed in her pocket.  The monster looked at her, an eyebrow raised as he pushed up the rope just enough to grab it.  Flipping it open, he read the message out loud. “Everyone alright? I’ll wait for you at Beckys.”  He made a pouty face. “Aww, how sweet of Kara. Let me just…” He started typing at the keys. “Keeping a… lookout… around town… with Sam… Dean is headed your way.”  Sam swallowed hard, and Lyra fought against the ropes. “Don’t worry, 

I’ll come back for you.”

~

Kara sat with Becky on the couch, watching the flames lick at the wood in the fireplace as she explained why they were there and what was happening.   Beck’s head was in her hands. “I just can’t believe it. This can’t possibly be true. If I didn’t trust you so much, I wouldn’t believe it.”

Kara chuckled.  “I don’t blame you.  Now I’m just worried if they’re okay or not.”

Becky offered Kara a hug.  “I’m sure they’re fine. Not that I care, after they all lied to me.”

“I lied too, Becky.”  Kara frowned, glancing apologetically to her old friend.

“Yeah but, you were just following their lead.  Besides, I could never stay mad at you, you helped me pass my psychology course.”

Kara tilted her head, thinking back to those days.  “Man, that seems like forever ago.”

Becky was about to ask why she left in the first place when the doorbell rang.  Kara perked up, so Becky stood with a smile on her face. “I’ll get it.”

Opening the door, there stood Dean.  Or at least, who they thought was Dean.  Becky folded her arms, looking angrily at him.  Dean sighed. “I know what you’re going to say.” Becky just raised her eyebrows, a frown on her face.  “Well, not exactly, but I can take a guess. Get off my porch?”

Becky cracked a smile.  “That would have been about right, if it weren’t for Kara already coming over to explain yourselves.”  Dean looks genuinely surprised. 

“I knew she was going to be here, but I didn’t think she’d tell you anything.”  Dean wanders into the living room, greeted by Kara, whose smile disappeared when she didn’t see Lyra or Sam with him.

“Is everyone okay?”

Dean nodded, sitting on the arm of the couch.  “Oh, yeah. They’re doing another round of the area.”  Dean watches as Becky goes to grab them all a beer, the corner of his mouth slightly curved upwards.

He couldn’t wait to kill them.

~

Sam tugged at his ropes, hoping to grab hold of the knot and work himself free.  Lyra watched with furrowed brows. “I don’t think we’re getting loose.”

Sam sighed, taking a moment to rest his hands.  “We can’t just let him get away.”

Lyra’s mouth opened to express her macabre opinion of their situation when a familiar voice called out to them both.  “What’d I miss?”

“Dean!!”  Sam twisted his head as far around as he could, seeing a lump of fabric moving as the real Dean appeared from under it.  He was tied too, but there was a piece of metal jutting out from the pipe he was tied to. “Dean, there’s a piece of metal on that pipe you’re tied to.  Use it to cut free!”

“Straight to business, okay.”  Dean groggily moved his arms until he could feel the rope tug against the sharp object.  He sawed over the spot, praying he didn’t cut himself. “So what’s new?”

Lyra chuckled.  “Where do we even start?  This _ , thing _ , is unlike any monster I’ve ever read about.”

Sam nodded, his attention pointing to Dean.  “It didn’t just steal your looks, it was as if he was downloading your thoughts and your memories.  He knew stuff about us that he shouldn’t have.”

Dean froze for a moment, glancing back to Sam.  “He didn’t say anything… specific, did he?”

Lyra and Sam exchanged a glance.  Lyra shook her head, and Sam shrugged.  He was wondering if the things said about him and Kara were true but decided against it, reasoning that the shifter could be lying just to get them riled up.  It was decidedly forgotten. “Not really.”

The room filled with an awful silence as they listened to the slow ripping of Dean’s rope.  It seemed like an eternity when the repetitive sound was replaced with a satisfying snap, allowing Dean to go free.  Sam and Lyra sighed with smiles on their faces as Dean pulled a knife out of his pocket and cut them loose. “So, where’d this asshole go?”  Dean spoke, determination shining in his eyes.

Sam and Lyra spoke in unison.  “Becky’s.”

“And Kara, where is she?!”  Dean looked around frantically, his eyes wide.  Sam put a hand on his arm.

“She’s at Becky’s, too.  We won’t make it in time, I think…”  Sam paused, getting a glare from Dean as he assumed what Sam was going to say.  It was a crazy idea, but the only one they had. 

“We need to call the police on you.”

~

The shapeshifter walked over to the fireplace, his new green eyes sparkling from the flickering flames.  Leaning toward the dancing orange and yellow, he soaked up the heat. It was a nice change from his usual dark, damp, and cold dungeon in the sewers.  “Maybe this monster we’re chasing is just misunderstood.”

Kara’s eyebrows knitted, her eyes locked on Dean as a wave of uneasiness washed over her.  “Abandoned, all alone.” Dean continued, his jaw tense and eyes intently focused on the fire.  “All he wants is for someone to love him.” His eyes darted over to Kara. “Just like me.” He winked, sending a hot flush all over her body.  The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and her heart skipped a beat before starting a race with itself. She was lost for words as Dean pushed away from the wall, walking closer to Kara.  Without thinking she stood fast, causing her to become light headed. “Everyone needs a little human touch now and then. It’s so hard to be different.” Dean came closer, until he was a breath’s length away.  Kara searched Dean’s eyes for any hint of truth.

Becky scoffed.  “Guys, seriously, go get a room.”

Kara shook her head, fear encapsulating her.  It hurt her to think it, but she knew Dean would never flirt with her like that.  Without breaking eye contact, she started backing away. “Beck…” Kara started, watching the anger flare in those familiar eyes she knew and loved well enough to know something was wrong.  It wasn’t Dean. “Call the cops.”

He lunged forward, his hand missing Kara’s arm by a hair as she dodged, running towards the kitchen with the intent of grabbing a knife.  The shifter changed his target as Becky started dialing on the home phone. He stormed over, ripping the phone from the wall, and punching Becky in the face.  She fell to the floor with a thud, and he sat on top of her and wrapped the cord around her neck. 

Kara grabbed the first knife she could find, sprinting over to save her friend.  Without a second thought she plunged the sharp object into the shifter’s back. His grip on Becky loosened, allowing her to gasp for air as he turned his now white eyes onto Kara.  She was out of weapons, and it hadn’t phased him. “That fucking hurt you little bitch!” Before she could even react, the shifter had grabbed the phone and flung it into Kara’s head, knocking her out cold. 

The shifter smirked, turning back to Becky, choking her until she passed out.  He pulled the knife out of his back, turning it around in his hand. Smiling, he moves the blade closer to Becky’s face, gently touching the tip to her cheek.  He looked her over with a cunning smile. “How should I decorate your skin?”

Sirens interrupted his thought the same time as flashing red and blue lights came in though the windows.  The shifter cursed to himself, dropping the knife. With one final glance at the two women, he blinked his eyes back to Dean’s green before making a getaway out the backdoor.

~

The hunters were reunited after the police were done questioning Kara about the incident.  The real Dean had stayed hidden with Sam while Lyra went to fetch Kara from the police. Now the four were standing in front of a store window with televisions on display.  On each screen there was a sketch of Dean Winchester, Wanted for murder. 

“Man, that isn’t even a good picture.”  Dean whined, crossing his arms. 

Kara sighed, flipping an ice pack over before putting it back on her head.  “Seriously, Dean? THAT’s what you’re worried about?”

Sam shook his head, almost smiling.  “You realize how much trouble we’re in, right?”

Dean shrugged, turning away from the sight that apparently appalled him.  “Whatever.”

Lyra pulled her phone out of her pocket to snap a picture of Dean’s ‘wanted’ sketch.  “So now what are we supposed to do about the shifter?”

Sam scratched at his head.  “I guess we need to go to the car, see if we have any silver bullets.”

Dean nodded, heading in the direction of the car.  “Good idea.” He intended on walking down main street to get there.

Lyra grabbed Dean’s jacket, pulling him back.  “You can’t go that way!” Dean glared at her, and she explained herself.  “We need to take alleyways, and hope nobody sees us.”

Sam held back a chuckle as Dean grunted, redirecting his path to go down an alleyway.  Kara smiled. “Smart. I wouldn’t have thought of that.” Lyra gave a smile and a nod, after which they all followed Dean.

Just as the classic car came into sight, sirens filled their ears.  Lyra groaned. “Just what I was afraid of…”

Sam swallowed hard as the police cars turned down the alleyway.  The group ran just out of sight of the cars before he spoke. “Dean, Kara, you two need to get out of here.”  

Kara didn’t ask any questions as Sam helped boost her up over a fence, Dean following.  Lyra waved. “Don’t you dare go after the shifter alone!”

Dean nodded, slipping out of sight just as the policeman came around the corner, pointing guns and flashlights at them.  Lyra was surprised at their speed and screamed, causing Sam to laugh at her as they put their hands up in surrender. “What was that?”  He joked.

Lyra huffed, her eyebrows scrunching as she pouted.  “So I’m a little jumpy! Hey, don’t laugh at me!!”

On the other side of the fence, Dean and Kara snuck around a few houses and hid until the police left with Sam and Lyra in their custody.  With nobody watching the Impala, they went to it, opening the trunk. Dean couldn’t find his gun with the silver bullets in it from before, so he lifted the floor to reveal a secret compartment where he loaded another pistol with his extra silver bullets.  Kara casted him a sideways glance. “Lyra said…”

Dean bit his lip.  “I know what Lyra said.  I don’t care.” With a click, the gun was loaded.  “If someone was running around with your face, wouldn’t you want him dead?”  Kara opened her mouth to object but bit her tongue and said nothing. She knew better than to try and change Dean’s mind.  All she could do was back him up. The look in his eyes almost made her afraid of him, but she trusted him to know what he was doing.  She grabbed a silver-plated knife, and with a slam of the trunk, the two headed back down into the sewers without another word.

The two blondes made their way through the tunnels, the piles of goop indicating they had indeed remembered the way to the shifter’s lair.  Dean had the gun pointed in front of him, Kara close behind with her knife in hand. They heard a muffled voice as they entered the chamber the shifter had made into its home.  Kara spotted someone tied up, a flour sack over their head. Dean watched her back as she ran over, pulling away the fabric and revealing a familiar face, causing Kara’s heart to drop and Dean’s to speed up in anger.  It was Becky.

There was a cloth in her mouth, preventing her from speaking.  Kara removed it before cutting away the rope tying her arms and legs together.  Dean yelled, waving his gun around. “What happened?!”

Tears streamed down Becky’s face.  “I was, was on my way to pick up Sam and Lyra from the police station when that THING jumped me!!”  Kara closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she trembled in fear. “I woke up here, just in time to see it turn into me!”

Dean cursed, nearly jumping as his phone buzzed in his pocket.  Kara and Becky watched with wide eyes as Dean shivered, reading his text.  “It’s Sam…” He paused as a chill ran through them. Sam and Lyra had no idea, and it would take them an hour to get to them.

“They think you picked them up, and they’re already at your house!”

~

The shifter’s face bore a great smile, a baseball bat in hand as it stared down at the knocked-out pair of hunters on the floor.  It had been way too easy to subdue Sam and Lyra; at least Kara put up a fight. It churned various ideas and ways to torture these two in its twisted mind while shedding Becky’s looks to regain Dean’s.  It strutted around without a care or a rush, grabbing some rope and tying the limp hunters onto separate chairs. It knew it wanted to mess with Sam first. It would be easy, considering there was plenty of pent up anger in Dean’s mind over him.

Lyra was the first to wake up.  Looking around wildly before she could even see straight, she called out for the younger Winchester.  “Sam?”

The shifter couldn’t help but make a little pouty face as Sam’s head shot up in response to the panicked voice of his comrade.  

Sam groaned, his head spinning as he saw they were both tied up, set on opposite sides of the room.  A white-eyed Dean stared down at him. He had a sharp knife in his hand, twirling it between his fingers.  “Your brothers got a lot of good qualities.” The shifter muttered, looking him over with a murderous gleam in his eye.  “You should appreciate him more than you do.”

Suddenly he burst from his calm disposition and punched Sam in the face.  His cheek instantly started to swell as he was hit again, cutting his lip.  Sam’s hands worked furiously at the knot that restrained him to the chair regardless of the pain.  “After everything he’s done for you.” A punch in the gut, the possible crack of a rib. Lyra’s eyes closed tightly, pushing back tears and too afraid to look.  “Then you run away, treat him like crap.” The shifter brought the knife close to Sam’s eye. “I’m just doing what Dean always wanted to; but couldn’t.”

The knife moved down, starting a small cut on Sam’s cheek, burning like fire just as his hands finally worked out the knot that was holding him back.  Sam’s arms flung out from behind the chair, knocking the knife out of the shifter’s hand and toppling him over. Lyra pulled at her ropes but hers were secure.  She watched in horror as the shifter and Sam threw punches and fell over each other, throwing any object they could find. The shifter used a lamp, knocking Sam to the ground.  “Even when we were kids I always kicked your ass!”

Tears fell down Lyra’s cheeks as the shifter wrapped his hands around Sam’s neck, gripping tightly.  “SAM!!” He reached for the knife, but it was just out of reach. Sam could hear his heartbeat in his ears, almost barely hearing Lyra’s pleading calls to the shifter as he stared into the white irises of Dean’s double.

Suddenly the front door flung open, and the shifter raised his head to see the man he was modeling after.  He didn’t even have a moment to react before Dean pointed his gun at him. “Let him go!!”

The shifter raised his hands, Sam gasping for breath the moment the weight was lifted.  The shifter grinned. “What’s the matter, Dean? You know you’ve always wanted revenge on your little brother.”

The shifter tried a quick-draw, reaching for the knife, but he stood no chance.  Dean didn’t even blink, shooting the doppelganger straight through the heart. He fell back, falling onto the kitchen table with a thud.  Kara emerged from behind Dean, running over to Lyra with her knife, cutting her free and wiping away her tears. 

Kara glanced over to the shifter, tears pricking her eyes, and prayed that would be the closest she would ever get to seeing Dean die.

Dean stood over his own dead body, his jaw clenched and knuckles white.  He swallowed hard, and with the anger of a thousand men he emptied the round into the shifter.  Sam sat up, watching Dean with a prickle of fear as he reached down, taking back his amulet with a swift yank and snap of cord.  With one final glare from his piercing green eyes, the group followed Dean, leaving the house through the alleyway just as the police arrived.

~

Becky stood out front of her house with Sam by her side, watching as Kara and Lyra were standing out on the street helping Dean look at a map that was spread out on the hood of the Impala.  A shiver passed over her. “I saw it, and still can’t believe it’s real. And you do this for a living?”

Sam nodded, his eyes focused on Lyra as she expressed herself with wild arm movements.  “Saving people, hunting things. It’s what we do.”

Shifting her stance, she folded her arms in thought.  “It must be lonely. Always on the road.”

Sam turned his eyes to his college friend.  “No, no. It isn’t, really.” He looked back to his friends and brother, his mouth turning up in a smile.  “I’ve got my brother, my best friend, and… Lyra.” Becky smirked, seeing him watch Lyra like that was a promising sight.  “Jess would want you to move on, you know.” 

Sam’s smile disappeared as quickly as it had come, his eyes darkening as he looked down at his feet.  “Yeah, I know.”

Becky gave Sam a hug, pulling him tight.  “And don’t tell Kara… but I think her and your brother would make quite the pair.”

Sam let out a chuckle, shaking his head as he pulled away from his friend.  “I think that too, some days.”

Becky waved as Sam said goodbye, making his way down the driveway.  He could hear Kara yelling at Dean, and Jess was already put out of his mind to make way for a smile for his ‘family’.

“We aren’t going four hours out of the way to make a pit-stop for PIE!”  Sam opened one of the rear-doors on the Impala, leaning on the hood with a foot in the car, listening with an honest grin as Kara tried reasoning with Dean over the one thing he would never give up.

“You don’t understand, they have the best pie!”  Dean tried convincing Kara, his hands gripping her shoulders.  “It tastes like heaven. You don’t know because you’ve never had it, which is even more of a reason to go while we’re so close!”

“That’s not close!”

Sam held back laughter as he took a back seat in the Impala, swiftly joined by Lyra, who made his heart race with a simple flash of her smile.  “They’re fighting over pie!” Little things she did could make his entire day.

“Yes, I heard.”  The two sat and listened, waiting for the bickering blondes.

Dean couldn’t believe he was arguing with Kara over something so stupid.  He folded the map, stuffing it in his pocket. “We’re getting the pie!” He moved to the driver’s door, hopping in.

Kara followed, getting in the passenger’s side door.  She had a huge smile on her face. She loved these stupid fights with Dean.  They made her heart race and she loved studying his expressions. “You’re such a freak sometimes, Dean.”

Dean gasped, pretending to be hurt by her words.  Her little laugh at his reaction made his heart skip a beat.  “I’m going to miss my own funeral. I deserve some of the world’s best pie.”

Kara blushed in response to his stunning smile.  “It had better be worth it!”

Dean nodded, starting the car.  “Oh, it is.”

“May I just add one thing to this conversation?” Sam piped up, a smirk on his face.  

Dean looked at Sam through the rearview mirror.  “Tell her it’s the world’s best pie!”

Sam shook his head.  “I just wanted to clarify, that we are ALL freaks!”

Everybody laughed.  The horrors of the night before were suddenly gone in the moment of joy.  They chanted “Here here!” before Dean turned on some classic tunes from the cassette, and off they went to their next adventure, rocking out all the way. 


	6. Timber

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean doing what he does best, suppressing emotions.

What do the hunters do when they’re not hunting?

               Usually it has something to do with drinking or gambling.  Or both.

               Today’s disaster in progress was Dean playing five-card.  He had never been good at any gambling game, but Lyra was winning big and his manly ego wouldn’t let him stand by and watch.  Ten games had finished already, Dean and three other guys at the bar all losing to Lyra.  Kara took a stand behind Dean, egging him on while Sam tried persuading them to stop before they lost the only cash they had.

               Lyra’s eyes seemed to pierce through Dean as he glanced over to judge her expression for a hint at her hand.  She had already been glaring at him, a sly smirk on her face.  She put forward a five-dollar chip as ante, pulling one card from her hand and threw it down.  “Playing, Draw one.”

               Dean nearly broke out in a sweat.  Only throwing one card was a sure sign that she had a good hand.  Looking down at his hand, he only had one pair of sixes.  Kara leaned down, whispering into his ear and sending a shiver up his spine.  “Draw three.”

               The Winchester nodded, putting forward the same amount and doing as he was told, throwing all his cards except his pair.  “Playing, Draw three…”  The other players didn’t even matter anymore.  Lyra’s eyes never left him as he was dealt his new cards, taking them one by one, hoping for a miracle.  His heart sped up.  Another six.  He pretended to look at the cards in thought, ‘wondering’ what he was going to do with these cards.  He picked up the second card.  His heart dropped, it was a jack.  Three of a kind wasn’t bad, but he needed the last six to have any chance against Lyra.  He could feel Kara’s hand grip tight on his shoulder as he drew the last card.  His poker face almost faltered as he drew a fourth six.  Four of a kind.  Lyra could only beat him if she had a straight or royal flush.  His hopes rose as the final round came, and the dealer asked first player Lyra, if she was going to stay or fold.

               Lyra shrugged halfheartedly.  She pushed a nice stack of chips to the middle of the table.  “Stay, bet twenty.”

               The other players all folded at this point, tired of losing to a girl.  Dean’s worried eyes glanced to Sam who shook his head, telling him to stop.  Dean smirked, ignoring all sense of reason.  He only had fifteen-dollars of chips left, so there was only one thing for him to do.  “All in.”

               Lyra raised her eyebrows.  She laid down her cards, a proud smile on her face.  “Full house.”

               Dean jumped up from his chair, throwing his hand on the table.  “Four of a kind!”  Lyra’s jaw dropped, shocked that Dean finally got the luck to beat her.  All the other men who had lost to Lyra that evening cheered as if the last knight of a kingdom had just defeated the dragon.

               Dean turned to Kara, who was jumping excitedly.  “You won!!” 

Her sparkling eyes and the adrenaline pumping through his veins made Dean lose control, his hands cupping her face and pulling her in.  Their lips met in a tantalizingly long kiss, deep and sweet.  When he pulled away, her face was blushing deeper than a rose, completely speechless.  The feel of her lips lingered on his as he tried to think of something witty to say, to take the edge of awkwardness off the situation, but he could think of nothing.  Avoiding her confused gaze, he gathered his poker chips and maneuvered around her, leaving her standing shocked; mouth still slightly hung open as if ready to ask a question she couldn’t quite get out into words.

               Kara’s eyes met Lyra’s that were equally wide and confused.  Lyra pocketed what remained of her money, gesturing for Kara to meet her outside.  Sam had slithered off to talk to Dean.

               Outside the bar, Lyra stood close to Kara, her voice low.  “What was that?”

               Kara shook her head, the shock of what happened still apparent in her stiff movements and surprised expression.  “I don’t know?”

               Lyra looked her sister over, wondering if she was going to be okay.  “Are you going to ask him about it?”

               Kara continued to shake her head.  “I don’t know.”

               Lyra grabbed Kara’s shoulders, giving her a gentle shake.  “Come on!  This could be your chance!”

               “I don’t know.” Lyra gave Kara a little glare, prompting her to say something other than ‘I don’t know’.  “It didn’t seem like he meant to.”  Kara gave a shrug, avoiding her sister’s gaze.

               Lyra groaned.  She thought back to the words the shapeshifter had used.  Dean _had_ to have some feelings for Kara.  “Listen, I promised not to tell, but I’m pretty sure he’s into you.”  Kara’s eyes regained a little sparkle, and Lyra smiled.  “So here’s what you’re gunna do…”

~

               Back inside, Sam sat next to Dean at the bar as he watched his older brother throw back a whisky.  “Dude, what was that?!”  Sam demanded.

               Dean made a little grunt.  “Does it matter?”

               “Yes!”  Sam looked around but couldn’t find the girls anywhere.  “I need to know if you have a thing for my best friend.”

               Dean cast the brunette a glare.  “As if you don’t have a thing for mine?”  He caught Sam look away, a faint blush rising on his cheeks.  “No, I don’t have a ‘thing’ for Kara… I just got excited.”

               Sam rolled his eyes.  The shifter’s words echoed in his mind as well.  He was afraid Dean might only be interested in Kara for nothing more than sex.  “Fine.  Whatever.”  Dean ordered another whisky and Sam pointed an angry finger at him.  Dean could hear the saltiness in Sam’s voice.   “Don’t you dare use her.”

               Dean went back into his doubtful thoughts as Sam left the barstool, wandering to do whatever it was Sam did on his nights out.  Dean was raised that personal relationships were bad, and only led to broken hearts and despair when they were inevitably killed.  Of course, he didn’t want anything bad to happen to the Magnums, but if something would happen it will be a lot easier to handle if they aren’t too close.  Then, he realized how great of a relationship they already shared after just a few months, and wondered if it would even be possible to avoid feelings like this in the future unless they disbanded.

               He didn’t have to think too long or too hard before a blonde woman who vaguely reminded him of Kara sat down next to him, a suggestive sparkle in her eye.  Dean smirked at her, ready to say whatever he needed to get her in the sack and get his mind off Kara.

               Of course, this was just in time for Kara to walk in, determined to talk to him.  She was only a couple steps into the bar when she saw Dean all over the woman, who looked like a hooker.  Lyra was standing right behind her with a pissed look on her face, worry over Kara’s feelings and anger towards Dean’s recklessness.  They stood and watched for a minute before the lady was dragging Dean away into the motel area of the establishment.  Kara could only blink, her throat tightening in anger and confusion as she blindly stormed out of the building, back into the parking lot.

               Blinded in rage, Kara saw the Impala and ran over to it.  She could still see the four of them hanging out, having beers after their first mission.  Tears filled her eyes as she kicked her foot into the drivers’ door of the classic car a few times, leaving quite the noticeable dent.  She was only stopped by Lyra when she pulled her away, wrapping her in a hug and calming her down as she failed to express the feelings that overwhelmed her in that moment.  The car sure didn’t deserve the beating… but the hurt it would cause Dean made it worth it.

               The sisters pretended they had no idea what made the dent in his car, just like Dean had pretended he didn’t kiss Kara.


	7. This Means War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let the prank war begin!

Dean took a deep breath before sighing, shifting his sitting position just slightly to help relieve the discomfort in his lower back.  He had been driving for almost ten hours, and he was ready for a break to get some pie or something fatty to eat.  Glancing in his rearview mirror, he saw Kara and Lyra sleeping against each other.  He chuckled, peeking over to Sam in the passenger’s seat and seeing that he had also fallen asleep, his head leaning against the window.  Sam’s mouth was hanging open slightly and Dean smirked, feeling around the seat for a spoon he had thrown around from their last fast food stop.  While keeping one eye on the deserted road, he slipped the spoon into Sam’s mouth.  The corners of Dean’s mouth turned up in a wide smile as he flipped open his phone, snapping a picture of Sam with the spoon.

A combination of the flash from his phone and the shutter noise woke Sam, who’s eyebrows knitted in confusion as he tried to speak only to find a spoon preventing him from doing so.  He angrily pulled the spoon from his mouth, glaring at his brother.  “Dean!”

Dean laughed as Sam chucked the spoon at him.  Kara’s head popped up, her sleepy eyes blinking rapidly at the sound of Dean’s name.  “What’s going on?”  She muttered.  Lyra grumbled in her sleep beside her.

Sam didn’t pay her any attention.  “What the hell was that for?  We aren’t kids anymore Dean!!  Cut it out!”

Dean shrugged, looking proudly at the image on his phone.  “You’re never too old for a prank, Sammy.”

Sam grunted, folding his arms.  “That wasn’t even a prank, that was just plain annoying.”

Dean raised his eyebrows, glancing over with wide eyes and a smirk.  “Was that a challenge?”

Sam rolled his eyes, sighing loudly.  “Dean, no.  I’m not interested in playing games.”

Kara reached up front to grab Sam’s shoulder in encouragement.  The thought of pranking Dean and her sister excited her.  “Come on, Sam!  We could totally own Dean in a prank war!”  Sam said nothing, his jaw clenching as he hoped they would just drop it.

Dean turned back to face Lyra, who still hadn’t completely woken up yet.  “Hey, Lyra!”  She opened one eye, glaring into the eyes of the man who had woken her up.  “You’re on my team!”

Lyra just closed her eye again, humming an “Uh-hum” of agreement as she shifted, laying her head against the window as she tried falling back asleep to the clutches of whatever dream she had been having.

Dean turned back to Sam, his face glowing with excitement.  “See, even Lyra’s in.  I bet you’ll be begging for mercy by the time we’re done with you!”

Sam opened his mouth to argue that Lyra didn’t even properly accept the challenge when Kara cut him off.  “Oh yeah?  You have NO idea what you just got yourself into, buddy!”

Sam groaned.  He knew Dean was serious about this, and Kara seemed excited for a chance to get a stab at Dean.  Sam had no real choice in this matter, except in what pranks he wanted to pull.  He gazed out at the scenery, his face grumpy, but his mind concocting ideas on how to get back at Dean.

The games were about to begin.

~

When the group had finally decided to make a stop and get a motel room, Dean found an excuse to pull Lyra away from the group and start planning their pranks.  He took her to the nearest café, and while sitting down to have a piece of homemade pie, convinced her to pull pranks with him.

“If we do this, you realize they will have to retaliate?”  Lyra took a bite of her burger, choosing her words as she chewed.  “Pranking is fun but being pranked isn’t.”

Dean pointed his fork at her.  “That’s just it though, we can’t just wait around for them to prank us.  If we show them we mean business, they’ll wave their white flag faster than I can order another piece of pie.”

Lyra tilted her head.  “So, basically hit them good and fast?”

Dean nodded, his mouth full of pie.  Lyra scrunched her eyebrows.  She didn’t particularly like the idea of pranking Sam… she wanted him to like her!  But, she could blame Dean for everything, and this way she would get to play against Kara just like when they were kids.  Looking up at Dean, she saw him giving her his best puppy-dog eyes and knew she couldn’t say no to her best friend.  “So, what’s first?”

~

Kara watched with a cautious eye as Dean not-so-smoothly pulled Lyra out of the motel room to ‘grab a bite’… more like plan their attack.  The second Dean drove off Kara ran to Sam, closing the lid of his computer to force him to look at her.  She was more than happy to finally have a chance to get back at Dean for last week, when he had pretended that kiss of theirs meant nothing.  “Okay, let’s get brainstorming, prank ideas, go!”

Sam rolled his eyes, the corners of his mouth curving up in a small smile.  “You know Dean don’t play fair, right?”

Kara’s eyes glistened.  “I’m counting on it.  No mercy.”

Sam chuckled, opening his computer back up to a list of prank ideas.  “I’m a step ahead of you!”

Kara sat down next to him, watching with wide eyes and an open mind as they scrolled through their options.  “I have a couple great ideas, specifically pointed at Dean.”

Sam nodded, a smile plastered on his face.  For being against the idea to begin with, part of him wanted to use Kara to his advantage to prank Dean harder than he had ever been pranked before.  “Oh yeah?”  He paused, moving his eyes from the computer screen to his best friend.  “Tell me…”

~

The first few pranks stayed relatively harmless and easy, like annoying buffers to buy time to prepare for the meanest ones.  Dean had been completely thrown off and pissed when he went to turn on the windshield wipers of the Impala only to have a rainbow smudge across the glass.  Kara had seen the idea online, using window drawing wax to make a hard-to-remove girly decoration on an unsuspecting driver’s car.  Dean had quite the time trying to get it all off, apologizing to his Baby for letting those ‘idiots’ defile his precious car.  He almost had an aneurism when he had only gotten half of the waxy mess off when he accidentally put a scratch in the windshield.

Sam had woken up to a surprise on his computer.  Not only was it blaring a Busty Asian Beauties video, his touch pad had been toggled off and all the keys on his keyboard had been swapped, so he couldn’t figure out what mix of buttons turned his mouse back on, nor could he even search google for what keys belonged where.  A fine mix of ideas by Dean and Lyra, they laughed hysterically as Sam blushed profusely trying to mute or close the window with porn on it.  Fantastically, it had happened when the window to the motel room was open and a group of people were passing by.  You should have seen how fast they walked away and the look on their faces… and Sam’s!

 Lyra got some skin removed when Sam caught her off guard at a diner, coating the outside of her beer with a thin layer of instant-stick glue while she and Dean had been arguing over which kind of pie to share.  She hadn’t noticed until she had taken a drink, trying to set it down only to have it still attached to her hand.  She knew it had been Sam because of the stupid grin on his face.  Sam got bonus points when Lyra accidentally spilled some of her beer on Dean’s crotch while he tried to peel the bottle from her hand, making it look like he had peed his pants.  However, it was equally hilarious of an outing for Dean, for not long into the meal Sam and Kara started itching something fierce in some unsavory places.  Dean failed to hold back his laughter, Lyra acting genuinely concerned as their siblings tried hiding their desperate attempts at scratching their itchy privates.  Dean’s itching powder was a classic trick and he had been waiting a long time for an excuse to use it again.  Sam and Kara were both far from happy as they nearly agreed to take showers at the same time just to get it off them.

But then, after about two weeks of constant pranking back and forth, Kara hit her limit, and knew she would have to do something to stop Dean and Lyra.  It was when Kara had gone to routinely clean and test her weapons only to find they had all been dismantled and thrown together in a jumbled mess.  It took her swearing more times than she could count and almost an entire day to piece them all back together.  Dean and Lyra were winning this war and she was sick and tired of it.  Out of sheer spite, Kara mixed Skittles, M&M’s, and Reese’s Pieces in the same bowl and relished every second of Lyra’s pain as she grabbed a handful, thinking they were just M&M’s, only to taste the horrifying mix without any warning.  She watched with vengeful eyes as Lyra sobbed out of frustration, trying to separate the candies in an effort to right the wrong Kara had made against the world of order.

These were only a few pranks of many.  Some including air horns, plastic wrap, and of course, tooth-paste filled oreos... which Dean had the utmost displeasure of finding first.  Kara knew that Sam and herself were running out of ideas, and by the rate at which attacks were slowing from her sister and Dean, they must be running out of ideas, too.  She grouped up with Sam, just as Dean was grouping with Lyra, as they discussed their final blows.  With these last pranks, only one group would win, so it had to be great.  The prank finale of a lifetime. 

Then Kara had an idea.  A brilliant idea, although the thought of it sent a shiver up her spine.  She realized that Dean and Lyra can’t win this prank war if she knew what was coming next!!  It isn’t a prank if you know it’s coming!  So, she put on her best push-up bra and tightest form-fitting jeans, practiced her puppy dog eyes and went begging… straight to Dean Winchester himself.  If Dean had any feelings for her at all, she might just get him to crack.

Interestingly enough, Kara didn’t think even for a second that Lyra would have the same idea.  Almost at the same time, the Magnums crawled to their enemies of the opposite sex with their best game faces and hoped for the best.

~

Dean had been protectively guarding his precious Baby ever since Kara had violated it.  Even going so far as so stand outside in the parking lot and doing gun maintenance out of the trunk.  He was all by himself in peace, cleaning his guns and spending time with his car when Kara approached him with quite the suspicious air about her.

He didn’t fail to notice she was looking particularly dolled-up, compared to her usual getup.  He hated himself for noticing, but she was wearing her best bra, and his favorite jeans… the ones that made her ass pop.  As if those things weren’t enough to drive him crazy, she was wearing one of his favorite flannels.  She had the extra length tied around her waist and her stomach was showing.  Her hair was down and flowing as she tossed it over her shoulder.  He tried to flash her a frown and appear serious as she leaned up against the Impala and investigated the trunk, following his hands movements as he cleaned his favorite gun.  He swallowed hard, trying to tear his gaze away from her captivating eyes.

“Hey, Dean.”  His hands gently shook as her words hit his ears.  She sounded like she wanted something, and he was afraid to find out what that was.  By the clothes she was wearing, what if she was going to ask for… that?  He promised Sam he wouldn’t touch her, but if she asked him to, even God couldn’t blame him for giving in, could he?

Dean used his gruffest voice in his best attempt to sound mad.  He couldn’t forget that Kara was the reason his Baby had a new scratch in her windshield.  “What do you want?”

Kara shrugged, picking up one of Dean’s knives and twirling it around in her hand, touching the tip to her finger.  “Something’s been on my mind.”  Dean could feel his heart rate increase, his eyes fixed on how delicately her hands maneuvered the weapon, playing with it as if it was harmless.  “Can we talk?”

Those words sent an icy shiver through his veins.  His forehead broke out on a light sweat as he clenched his jaw, gripping his gun tight out of fear.  He avoided her eyes as he pretended to look around the trunk for something.  “I’m listening.”

Kara took a deep breath, and his pulse raced as he waited painful seconds before she finally spoke.  Her face flushing red as she spewed what was on her mind.  “I need to know what your next prank is gunna be.” 

Dean’s stomach dropped.  He slowly turned his head, looking her in the eyes with squinted eyes and a lump in his throat.  That had been nothing like he was expecting.  This felt like just another prank... an incredibly cruel prank.  His voice was hoarse as he growled at her.  “What?”

Kara leaned into Dean, a smile on her face.  “Come on!  We can end this whole prank thing once and for all if you just tell me what to look out for!”

Dean’s jaw dropped, his mouth agape as he stared into Kara’s hazel eyes that were glistening in the sun.  He broke out in a fit of laughter as he realized how stupid he had been to think that maybe Kara was going to ask him out or something along the likes of that.  “Absolutely no way in Hell!”

Kara pouted, punching Dean on the shoulder.  “Why not?!”

Dean felt conflicting emotions, seeing her eyebrows scrunch as she tried standing tall, her lips almost pursed as she stood up to him. She was adorable mad, he thought to himself.  It was one of the reasons why he picked fights with her so often.  That pouty face she didn’t know she made was also one of the reasons why he willed himself to keep quiet.  Finally, he knew that Lyra would probably kill him if he fessed up.  Literally, Lyra would have him killed if he gave away the amazing plot of their last prank.  Dean truly wanted what was best for Kara and knowing what himself and Lyra had planned for their final prank against her left him with a guilty feeling in his stomach as he ultimately decided not to tell.

Dean turned to face Kara fully.  “It’s just too good!  I’m not giving up this opportunity, no matter how much you beg.”  Dean was proud of himself for his restraint, but almost as if he had ushered a challenge, Kara took a step towards him so that their bodies were almost touching, and she stood on her tip-toes to get her face as close to his as she could.

Dean could feel his heart stop as he felt her breath against his face.  “You sure about that?”

Dean swallowed hard, pushing her away.  His eyebrows raised, he pointed at her with his gun, shutting the trunk of the car.  His emotions were running wilder than when he was a teenager, and he played them off with a handsome smirk.  “You watch out!”

Dean turned his back to a cross-armed Kara, letting out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding.  He walked back into the motel, wiping off the sweat from his brow with the sleeve of his shirt.  He peeked out the window to see Kara sitting on the hood of the car, a disappointed look on her face, and he felt his heart flutter once again.  He had no idea what had just happened, but as he turned away from the window and flopped down on his bed, he planned on doing what he was best at…

Forgetting it had ever happened.

~

Sam had been enjoying some peace and quiet during one of his regular runs.  It was quite an unpopular pastime among the group; it seemed to him like he was the only one worried about his health.  So, it greatly surprised him when he caught sight of Lyra waving him down and running towards him.  At first his heart seemed to leap at the sight of her. Lyra’s smile was one of the few things that kept him going anymore.  Then he remembered that they were supposed to be rivals and he slowed his pace, letting her come to him.

“Hey Sam!” 

He could see her face was flushed from the short burst of a run, and he couldn’t help but chuckle at her.  Lyra’s eyebrows scrunched in confusion as he made a face at her.  “You should run more.”  Sam joked.

Lyra huffed, rolling her eyes as she took a couple of deep breaths before speaking.  “I only run when I need to!” Now that she was up close, Sam could see that Lyra had put some effort into her appearance today, with some makeup and nicer clothes than usual.  Not that she ever needed anything extra to be beautiful in his eyes.  He couldn’t help but wonder why.  “Mind if I wander with you?  I lost Dean.”

Sam felt a smile play at his lips as he thought about the offer.  He knew Kara would be upset to see him hanging out with the ‘enemy’, but there was no way he was going to turn down an opportunity to hang out with Lyra.  After all this prank business had started, he hadn’t gotten to spend as much time with her as he would have liked.  So he shrugged his shoulders and started walking with a nod.  “Sure.”

Sam watched as Lyra sighed, smiling excitedly as she walked next to him.  Sam found himself staring.  For some reason she was particularly clingy, bumping into him every few steps so that their arms would touch.  Every time his skin would meet hers his heart skipped a beat. 

He was startled when she jumped excitedly, wrapping one of her hands around his wrist, pulling him towards a shop window.  “SAM loooook!”  Sam’s heart raced so fast it felt like it was going to fail on him as her arm linked with his as she gazed into the window.  It was an adoption agency, and a litter of kittens were playing just inside. 

The various incomprehensible noises that came from Lyra, mixed with the affectionate death grip she had on his arm made Sam’s face flush red.  He tried to laugh it off, looking at the kittens for a little while with Lyra until she headed towards the door, at which point Sam pulled her away and made her keep walking.  There was no way they would ever leave if he let her go inside.  Once they were far enough away, he pulled himself out of her grip.

His heart was beating so loud in his ears obstructing his thought process enough that it wasn’t until a block later that he realized Lyra’s face was bright red.  He tilted his head to try and look her in the eyes, which she sheepishly avoided.  “Are, are you okay?”  He chuckled.  “We can go back to the kittens if you really want?”

Lyra chuckled, her eyes trying to make contact but darting away as soon as they had met his.  “Oh, it’s not, it’s not that.  I actually, well… I have a, um, confession.”  Her nervous stuttering took Sam’s breath away.  He stopped walking, making her stop to turn and face him with wide eyes.  His heart raced, and his palms began to sweat.  His mind flooded with all the possibilities of what she might say, and he could feel his heart lodged in his throat.  He was secretly praying that she was going to admit feelings for him.  His mind played a scenario where he could sweep Lyra off her feet and kiss her passionately right here and now, up against the very building they were standing next to.  Sam imagined Lyra’s lips would be so soft, so tender…

“I didn’t lose Dean.  Actually, I was looking to get you alone on purpose, because, I wanted to know…”  Sam’s breath caught in his throat as he studied the emotions written on her blushing face, her eyes trying desperately to avoid his.  “I wanted to know what the last prank was going to be.”

Sam’s jaw clenched, straightening his posture and taking a defensive step back as he repeated her words over again in his head.  “Wait, that’s it?”

Lyra’s breath seemed to hitch slightly.  “Yeah…”

Sam couldn’t believe it.  He had to admit, his heart ached after being led on like that.  He wanted to be mad, but instead he was just disappointed.  He groaned, running a hand through his hair as he looked down on Lyra.  Her fingers folded together in a prayer-like fashion as she pleaded with him.  “I’ll tell you what ours is if you tell me yours!”

The first thing that flashed through Sam’s mind was an image of Kara yelling at him with all her might.  “YOU’D BETTER FUCKING NOT!!”  He nearly flinched as his inner Kara screamed.  His instinct knew that Kara would kill him if he gave into Lyra now.  Sam sighed, shrugging his shoulders.  Might as well tell the truth.  “I’m sorry, I don’t think your sister would allow me to live if I did that.”

Lyra caught Sam off-guard when she lunged forward, her hands grabbing onto his shirt and pulling his face down towards hers in a desperate plea.  His heart stopped as he saw how tantalizingly close his lips were to hers.  “Please, Sam!!  You didn’t even want to participate in the first place?!”  He was at a loss for words as Lyra continued to beg.  “My hand hurts, Dean won’t stop complaining about his car, and I can still taste that horrible mix of candies…”

Sam lightly took a grip around Lyra’s wrists, the touch sending sparks through his body and making her loosen her grip on him.  He looked into her eyes as he politely declined the offer.  “I’m sorry!  It isn’t my choice anymore.”

Lyra’s gaze dropped as her hands did, guilt eating away at Sam.  He couldn’t see her face to see what she was thinking, but he was worried he had hurt her feelings somehow.  “Hey, I can’t tell you what the prank is, but I can tell you it’s directed at Dean.”

Lyra lifted her gaze, any indication of being hurt had left her eyes as she beamed a smile at him.  “Really?”

  Sam nodded, the guilt lifting as he felt he had reached a happy medium.  His heart still ached from having Lyra so close to him and not being able to reach out and take her, but he told himself it was all for the best.  “So there you go. You got a hint.”

Lyra chuckled, looking around at her surroundings.  “Thank you, Sam...”  Sam squinted his eyes at her as he swore he had heard her call him Sammy.  He watched her start to walk away before he realized something.

“Hey!  Aren’t you going to give me a hint?”  Sam yelled out behind her.

Lyra turned around, walking backwards as she stuck her tongue out at him.  “I never agreed to sharing hints!”

Sam laughed at himself.  He’d been played.  Yet, coming from Lyra… he didn’t seem to mind.

~

Dean peered over Kara’s shoulder with wide, excited eyes as she tried to maneuver herself in the small kitchen space available in their hotel room whilst mixing the filling for a pie.  Kara groaned, elbowing Dean in the abdomen on purpose as she stirred.  “This would be a lot easier if you weren’t hovering.”

Dean leaned closer, reaching his hand around to try and dip his finger in the chocolate mix.  He grunted as Kara pulled it out of his reach.  “I want to make sure you’re doing it right!”

Kara shook her head, her eyes rolling as she kicked at the Winchester who was towering over her.  “It’s an instant pudding pie, I can’t mess it up, now go away!”

Dean watched her work like a hawk as she mixed the ingredients together.  The night before she had mentioned that she hadn’t made one of these oreo-crusted chocolate pudding pies in a long time, and of course, Dean being Dean, wanted her to make one asap.  So, she had gone out, gotten the ingredients, and was making it for everyone as a treat.  Now Dean wasn’t showing any sign of leaving Kara alone until it was finished, and she was getting understandably irritated.  Lyra was taking a nap in one of the beds, and Sam was checking his emails, offering her no help at all it seemed.  She was waiting for something before putting the chocolate mix into the pie crust, and it needed to happen before it started to set…

Kara sighed with relief as she heard Sam’s phone ring.  That was what she had been waiting for.  After a few brief words, Sam peeked in on Dean and Kara, looking at his brother with a straight face.  “Hey, Dean.  One of Dad’s friends is on the line, he wants to know our opinion on some activity near his place?”

Dean instantly dropped his smirk, turning to Sam with a fire in his eyes.  “Okay.  Let me talk to him.”  Sam led Dean outside, so they could talk to their fellow hunter over the phone on speaker without waking Lyra.  The call had worked, and their final prank was set in motion.

The second that door shut behind them, Kara quickly dropped the whisk, pulled a baggie out of her pocket and poured out its contents into the pudding mix before stirring it in and making it disappear.  She could hardly hold back her excited chuckles as she poured the mix into the crust.  Knowing that what she had just put into the mix was a quadruple dose of daily laxative, Kara avoided every instinct that told her to lick the bowl clean and instead washed it before putting the pie in the fridge to set up.  By the time Sam and Dean came back into the hotel room, she had cleaned up all the evidence of her acts and managed to put the angry frown back on her face. 

Dean looked around the kitchen with a smile again as he saw Kara. “When’s it going to be done?”

“In an hour!”  As Dean made an excited fist, Kara caught the corner of Sam’s mouth curve up in a slight smirk.

Not surprisingly, it hadn’t even been an hour before Dean had snuck into the kitchen and sat down with the pie.  Lyra found him with it half-eaten after waking up from her nap.  Sam and Kara tried to act mad, ‘taking’ a piece for themselves before letting Lyra fight with Dean over what was left.  Sam and Kara’s eyes met, sparkling with joy as they counted the minutes down to the big finale.

Obviously, it hit Dean the hardest, having eaten most of the pie all by himself.

The eldest Winchester couldn’t keep his bodily noises from echoing in the entire motel room.  Sam and Kara, by some miracle, held back their laughter until Lyra was hit by the laxatives, desperately needing to use the restroom that Dean was currently glued to.  When the duo broke out in a fit of hysteria, she screamed profanities at them as she ran out, breaking into the room next-door just to use the toilet.  Dean cursed at them, yelling over the pain he was experiencing.  “PIE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!!!”  Kara and Sam high fived, their sides hurting as they continued to laugh and cry at the success of their final prank.

Suddenly Sam’s phone rang.  He answered it with a smile on his face, traces of his laughing fit still prevalent in his tone.  “Hello?”  Sam’s eyebrows knitted with confusion as he answered the voice on the other line.  “Excuse me, what ad?”

Kara took a deep breath, eyeing Sam with curiosity as he shook his head, eyes wide.  “You’ve got the wrong number, that’s definitely not me.”  Sam hung up, blinking at Kara with bewilderment. 

Kara tilted her head slightly.  “What was that about?”

Sam chuckled, shrugging his shoulders.  “He asked if I was a gay stripper.”

“Seriously!?”  Kara burst out laughing.  “What an unfortunate wrong number!”

Sam and Kara had a quick laugh over the phone call, that was until Sam got another phone call.  From someone else, a lady this time, once again asking for the gay stripper.  Kara shook her head.  “Man, someone must have put up an internet ad with the wrong number, and now you’re getting all their business.”

The duo heard a small cackle from the bathroom.  Their smiles dropped, their fiery eyes met as they shook their heads.  “DEAN!!”  They yelled in unison, just as Lyra entered the room.  Their heads whipped around, their eyes glaring at her, looking for answers. 

Just then, as Lyra was deciding whether to stay or leave, Kara’s phone rang.  She glanced nervously at Sam, then glared at her sister as she answered it.  Her face got red as the person on the other line spoke, and she screamed her response.

“I AM NOT A PROSTITUTE!!!”

The mischievous grin on Lyra’s face was all the answer they needed to know.  Kara hung up, throwing her phone on the bed before racing after Lyra.  With a squeal, Lyra turned tail and ran with Kara hot on her heels.  Sam laughed at the two of them just as his phone started ringing some more.  Kara’s phone was also began ringing off the hook.  “Good God, Dean, how many ads did you put up?!”

Sam could still hear the girl’s screams from out on the street from the window as he heard Dean’s voice through the bathroom door, right before making another audible dump.  The number Dean threw at Sam made his blood run cold.

“A hundred!”

~

A week had passed since the final pranks had ensued.  Sam and Kara spent much of the week hunting down the posters their siblings put up, and best of all, Dean still couldn’t look at a pie without the urge to run to the bathroom.  It had left Lyra’s system fairly quickly, but Dean had ingested so much laxative he couldn’t eat anything other than water for two days without major bowel consequences.

Sam threw their bags into the trunk of the Impala before slamming it shut.  “Considering the fact that we turned Dean away from his one true love, I think Kara and I won this war.”

Dean’s stomach growled at the mention of pie as he jumped into the driver’s seat.  Lyra smiled, shrugging her shoulders.  “I admit defeat.”  She leaned up against the car, her eyes squinted against the sun.  “I don’t want to go up against Kara ever again.  I can still taste those candies…”

“Hey, my favorite revolver STILL doesn’t work!”  Kara high-fived Sam before hopping into the backseat.  “We did good!”

Dean yelled out the window.  “You scarred me for life!  You’re lucky I don’t leave you two on the side of the road somewhere.”

Sam chuckled, opening the door to the passenger’s seat and sliding in.  “Hey, Kara and I probably need to get new phones thanks to you.  If anything, I’d say we’re even.”

Kara shook her head as Lyra hopped in next to her, Dean firing up the engine.  “I won’t accept anything less than victory!”

The group of hunters bickered back and forth as Dean backed them out of the parking lot and started them off down the road, the Impala carrying them to their next destination.  It was in moments like these they could almost taste a normal life, without monsters and death around every corner.  Their voices escaping through the open windows of the classic car, they all were thankful for each other’s companionship and would treasure moments like these forever.


	8. Faith

Dean shouldn’t be here.

               Kara looked over the Winchester, whose green eyes were closed as he lay asleep on a hospital bed.  Her heart broke as her mind flashed the scenario back in her mind yet again.  They had been saving a pair of children from a monster… what it was she can’t even remember, but the boys knew it needed 10,000 volts of electricity to the chest to take it down.

               Note to self; electricity and flooded basements aren’t a smart combination.  Of course she knew this, but she would never forget the leap her heart made as she saw Dean aim at the monster with his stun gun, set to max as the realization hit her.  The monster was in a puddle of water, and Dean, having been shoved back by said monster, was laying in the same puddle.  She tried to yell stop, but with his finger pulling on the trigger, it was too late.  All she could do was watch as the electricity hit the monster, then run straight through the water and into Dean.

               Sitting here now with Lyra’s hand on her shoulder for comfort, she’s honestly more surprised he survived at all.  But the doctors said it wasn’t going to last.

               Sam stood in the hallway, his hand gripping his chin as he asked again.  “Are you sure there isn’t anything you can do?”

The doctor shook his head once again. “The electrocution triggered a massive heart attack.  I’m sorry, but we can’t work miracles.  You should be thankful he’s alive at all.”

A frown on his face and tears pricking at his eyes, Sam re-entered the room where his brother lay dying.  Kara’s head perked up for a moment at the sight of him, but as he shook his head in defeat he saw the tears fill her eyes, and his throat clenched tight.  Even Lyra seemed to be holding her breath, forcing back a flood of tears.  He didn’t have the heart to tell them that the doctors only gave Dean a month to live, instead of the original six.

 Sam’s thoughts were interrupted as Dean’s voice washed over them, quiet and gravelly, but not shaky.  “Looks like you’re gunna have to leave town without me.”

Lyra shook her head, a small smile on her face.  Her voice faltered.  “We aren’t going anywhere.”

Dean chuckled, looking to Sam.  “You better take care of that car.  If you don’t I swear I’ll haunt your ass.”

Sam met Dean’s smirk with a frown.  “I don’t think that’s funny.”

“Oh come on, it’s a little funny.”  Dean, Sam and Kara looked over to Lyra, hating her as she was clearly holding back laughter.  Only she thought it was funny.  The silence made Dean sigh.  “Look, what can I say, it’s a dangerous gig.  I drew the short straw.  That’s it, end of story.”

Kara and Lyra stayed silent as Sam snapped back.  “Don’t talk like that, all right?  We still have options.”

“What options?”  Dean shrugged slightly.  “You got burial or cremation.  I know it’s not easy but, I’m gunna die.  And you can’t stop it.  None of you can stop it.”

Lyra and Kara looked to the floor, hurt flooding their eyes.  Sam glared at his brother before turning to leave.  He bit his lip, muttering just loud enough for them all to hear.  “Watch me.”

~

Sam clenched his teeth.  Ring.  Ring.  Ring.  Voicemail, again.  He cursed to himself as he listened to his father’s recorded voice for the tenth time in the last three days.  Sam had been calling all the contacts in his father’s journal, desperately looking for a way to save Dean, and he only had one lead so far.  He slammed the phone shut, ready to throw it across the room.  He had left his father a million messages, and still no answer.

A quiet knock on the door startled Sam.  Grabbing his gun off the table, he held it behind his back as he opened the door.  His eyes widened as he saw Dean standing here, with Lyra and Kara on his arms, helping him stand.   Smiles plastered on all their faces.  “What the hell are you doing here?”

“We checked him out.”  Lyra stated matter-of-factly.

Sam’s eyebrows came together, his mouth dropping open.  “Are you crazy?”

Dean sauntered into the room as if nothing had happened.  Kara shrugged.  “We weren’t going to let him die in a hospital.”

Dean chuckled as he sat on the end of the bed, cringing as a wave of pain went through him.  “The nurses weren’t even hot.”

Sam shook his head, his teeth clenched as he glared at his brother.  “You know, this whole I laugh in the face of death thing it’s crap.  I can see right through it.”

Kara shot Sam a dirty look.  “Sam, Jesus give him a break.”

Before Sam had time to retort, Lyra walked up to him.  “Besides, have you even slept?”  Sam paused, unwilling to answer knowing that the truth was no.  “You look worse than him.”

Sam sighed, letting out a loud breath he didn’t even know he had been holding.  “I’ve been scouring the internet for the last three days while also calling every person in Dad’s journal.”

“For what?”  The three asked in unison.

“For a way to help you.  One of them called back, told me about a guy in Nebraska.  A specialist.”

Lyra and Kara exchanged a sad, unconvinced glance.  Dean groaned.  “You’re not gonna let me die in peace, are you?”

Sam shook his head, a small smile appearing on his tired face.  “I’m not going to let you die, period.”  He ignored the skeptical looks he got from everyone in the room.  “We’re going.”

~

Sam drove, with Dean in the passenger’s seat and the girls in the back as he pulled up the driveway to a farmhouse.  In the yard was a large tent, and cars parked all around.  Signs spoke of a faith healer, and as Sam parked the car, Dean swore as he pulled himself out of the car with a groan.

“Man, you big fat liar, I thought you said we were going to see a doctor.”

Sam chuckled, closing the door and making his way towards the tent.  “I believe I said specialist.  This guy is supposed to be the real deal.”

If only you could see the shock, disbelief and slight horror on the Magnum girl’s faces.  Dean glared at his surroundings as they neared the tent, surrounded by people of all ages as they funneled in like a herd of cattle. “I can’t believe you brought me to see some guy who heals people out of a tent.”

An older lady who was passing by them flashed a smile at Dean.  “Reverend Le Grange is a great man.” 

Dean wrinkled his nose at her.  This whole place stank to him.  “Yeah, that’s nice…”

Their attention was turned as yelling filled their ears.  As they looked from curiosity, they saw a man fighting with a police officer.  “I have a right to protest!  This man is a fraud!  He’s bilking all these people out of their hard-earned money.”

The man in uniform held him back from going closer to the tent, pushing him away.  “Sir, this is a place of worship.  Let’s go.  Move it.”

Lyra chuckled. “I take it he’s not a part of the flock.”

Sam shrugged, a small sigh escaping him.  “Well when people see something they can’t explain, there’s controversy.”

“Yeah, but, come on Sam… a faith healer?”  Dean’s eyebrows scrunched, glaring at everything he saw.

Sam put a hand on his brother’s shoulder.  “Maybe it’s time to have a little faith Dean.”

“Even I think you sound crazy right about now, Sam.”  Lyra muttered, hiding into her hoodie, hoping to become invisible to these weird people.  Kara was doing the same.

Dean glanced at the girls, wishing his jacket had a hood right about now.  “You know what I got faith in?  Reality.  Knowing what’s really going on.”

Sam groaned, tilting his head.  “How can you be a skeptic with the things we see every day?”

Dean spat back in anger.  “Exactly, we see them we know they’re real!”

Sam waved his arms at his brother.  “But if you know there is evil out there how can you not believe good’s out there?”

Dean growled.  “Because I’ve seen what evil does to good people.”

A blonde girl who was walking past them stopped, flashing Dean a smile.  “Maybe god works in mysterious ways.”

Dean’s stone-cold face from a moment before softened, a sly smile appearing where his frown was.  “Maybe he does.  I think you mighta just turned me around on the subject.”

Lyra rolled her eyes, and Kara scoffed.  “Oh sure…”

Dean held out his hand to the blonde.  “I’m Dean.”  She took it warily.

“Layla.”  She glanced at his group and could tell most of them were uncomfortable being there.  “So, if you’re not a believer then why are you here?”

“Apparently my brother believes enough for the both of us.”  Dean replied, sending a smile in his brother’s direction.  Sam shook his head, and waved good-bye as an older woman came up to Layla, pulling her into the tent.

Dean smirked, leaning into Sam.  “I bet you SHE can work in some mysterious ways…”

Lyra overheard him and threw out a hand to smack him upside the head.  Dean met her glare with his own just before they finally made their way into the tent.  People were sitting on foldable lawn chairs put together in a line with an isle down the middle.  A man was playing a piano in the far corner, and by the way a man wearing white was making his way on stage, the sermon was about to begin.

Kara spotted a camera set up at the far back of the tent, over the entrance and pointing towards the stage.   “Yeah, peace love and trust all over.”

Dean tries to take an empty seat towards the back, but Sam pulls him away, pushing him towards the front.  Lyra and Kara silently decided to stand by the tent wall, just under the camera.  They watch as Sam and Dean take a seat beside the woman, Layla, from before.   Kara bites her lip.  “Of course they have to sit by blondie…”

The piano stops, and everyone’s attention is turned to the man on the stage.  That must be Le Grange.  He begins.  The piano starts up again.  “Each morning, my wife, Sue Ann, reads me the news.  Never seems good does it?”

Lyra and Kara roll their eyes as much of the congregation harmoniously reply “No.”  Just like a real church.  Gross.

Lyra leans into Kara.  “I hate church.”

Kara nods, speaking quietly and completely ignoring the preacher.  “My adoptive family used to force us to go to church, and Sunday school.  We had to get up at 4 in the morning to get there on time.”

Lyra shuddered.  “I think it should be illegal to force kids to go to religious gatherings.  They haven’t even decided for themselves what they believe in yet.”

Kara nodded in full agreement.  Her eyes fixed on the back of Dean’s head, tears started welling up in her eyes.  “Do you think there’s any hope for Dean?  Any at all?”  Lyra glances over to her sister in shock.  Wrapping an arm around her, she doesn’t answer.  Kara can’t hold back the emotions.  She had been strong all week for Dean but couldn’t hold it back any more.  She didn’t believe in miracles and knew Dean didn’t have much time left.  She had dreamed, hoped more than anything, that someday Dean would confess secret feelings for her.  If he doesn’t, she will forever regret not having something more with him.  But, on the other hand, if he does, now there wouldn’t be any time to make memories to live on.  Which was worse, she wondered?

Her thoughts were broken as she realized the piano had stopped playing again, and everyone was quiet.  “You think so young man?”  The preacher was talking to someone.  Following the glares from the people in the room, her and Lyra’s blood runs cold as they realize he’s talking to Dean.  Lyra lightly smacks herself in the forehead.  Of _course_ it was Dean causing a scene.

Dean shifts in his seat, glancing around with a sympathetic smile. “Sorry.”

The preacher raises his hands.  “No no. Don’t be.  Just watch what you say around a blind man we got real sharp ears.”  The audience laughs softly.  The piano starts up again.  “What’s your name son?”

Sam elbows Dean when he doesn’t answer.  With a grunt, he answers.  “Dean”

The audience starts to clap.  The blonde woman who sat next to Sam closed her eyes sadly, looking down at her feet as Le Grange smiled.  “I want you to come up here with me.”

The audience starts to cheer.  Chanting Dean’s name as he refuses to leave his seat.  Sam pushes Dean lightly, but he doesn’t budge.  He shakes his head, trying to refuse.  A burning sensation at the back of his head made him turn to look back at the girls.  His heart skipped a beat as he saw Kara wiping tears away from her face.  He turned his attention back to the preacher.  With a newfound determination, he stood from his chair, earning more cheers.  He slowly walked to the front, getting help from who he could only assume is Sue Ann to hop up on stage.  His eyes once again became fixed on Kara, his heart aching for her.  If there was any chance this could work, he needed to take it.

Dean sighs, the overwhelming feeling of doubt taking over him.  He whispers.  “Look, no disrespect, but uh, I’m not exactly a believer.”

The preacher smiles.  “You will be son.  You will be.  Pray with me, friends.”

Sam, Lyra, and Kara watch with the eyes of a hawk as Le Grange raises his hands in the air slowly, as if feeling the air.  He moves one of his hands to place it on Dean’s head, earning him a wary glance.

Suddenly, Dean feels faint.  His heart is skipping beats erratically, his vision starting to go black.  His knees tremble, so he falls to them.  His body felt like it was being wrapped with an indescribable cold, and unable to keep his eyes open, he closes them, collapsing to the floor with a thud.

Kara bolts to the front of the stage, beating Sam to the green-eyed Winchester.  She places her hands on him, one hand shaking him while the other lightly smacked his face.  “Dean?  Dean!”  Sam crouched down next to them, concern on his face.  Lyra hung back, confused as the congregation cheered louder than before. 

Dean felt as if his soul was being sucked back into his body as he awoke with a gasp for breath, his vision spotty.  He saw Kara leaning over him, and she backed away as he sat up, confused as to what had just happened.  Glancing to Le Grange, he saw him smiling.  “He is healed!”

Dean glanced to Sam, his eyes wide.  “What the hell?”  A figure moved beside the preacher, and he did a double take.  The man was wrinkly and pale, had black holes for eyes, and vanished as soon as he saw it.  His blood ran cold, his ears ringing as the congregation continued to cheer for him.

Something wasn’t right about any of this.

~

Sam drove them to the nearest hospital.

The doctor flipped through some paperwork and shrugged.  “According to our tests, there’s nothing wrong with your heart, no sign there ever was.”  Dean sighed with relief.  Kara’s eyes filled with happy tears as she held herself back from tackling Dean.  He noticed this, and encapsulated her in a big hug, pulling Lyra into it to make it look like it was meant to be a group hug.  The doctor continued.

“Not that a man your age should be having heart trouble, but still it’s strange, it does happen.  Just yesterday a young guy like you, 27, athletic, out of nowhere had a heart attack.”  A nurse popped her head in the room, summoning the doctor out.  Sam waved her goodbye, turning to Dean with a smile on his face.  Dean’s smile was gone, and he held on tight to the girls as he turned to Sam.

“That’s odd.”  Dean muttered, shooting a fiery glare at Sam.

Sam sighed, shoulders dropping.  “It’s just a coincidence, people’s hearts give out all the time.”

Dean shook his head, his body tense.  “No, they don’t, Sam.”

“Do we really have to look this one in the mouth?  Why can’t we be thankful that the guy saved your life?”  Sam’s arms dropped to his sides in defeat.

Lyra and Kara shared a glance.  “He has a point…”

Dean raised his voice, making Kara and Lyra flinch.  “Because something shady is going on here, guys!!”

Sam bit his tongue and kept his voice low.  “You don’t know that!”

Dean rubbed his temples.  “I’ve got this feeling I can’t shake, Sammy.  When I was healed I just felt, wrong.  I felt cold, and for a second, I saw someone beside the reverend and I’m telling you… it was a spirit.”

Sam paused, taking Dean’s words into consideration.  “If there was something there I think one of us would have seen it.”  The girls just shrugged.  Dean pleaded with his brother.

“Sam I’ve been hunting long enough to trust a feeling like this.”

Lyra closed her eyes, making a fist to calm down.  She was tired of the arguing. “So what are we going to do about it?!”  She yelled.

Silence hung in the air around them.  Dean thought it over, and after a minute he nodded to himself.  He pointed to Sam.  “Why don’t you and Kara go check out heart attack guy, and we’re…”  He gently pushed Kara over to his brother and kept hold of Lyra.  “Gunna visit the reverend.” 

Everyone nodded, hoping they didn’t do something to reverse the miracle that had just happened to them.

~

The eldest and the youngest split up, going to their respective places.  Sam and Kara checked out the details surrounding the death of the athlete, while Dean and Lyra paid another visit to reverend Le Grange.  They could have filled a notebook with their suspicions from the investigations; all of which pointed to the reverend being somehow responsible for the death of the athlete.  Sam and Kara returned to the hotel first, doing some digging on more info while they waited for their siblings, dread filling them for the anger they knew was coming from Dean.

They nearly jumped out of their skins when they heard the door unlock.  They were here.

Dean spoke instantly as the door shut behind them.  “What’d you find out?”

Sam and Kara exchanged a worried, sad glance before Sam got the courage to face his brother.  “I’m sorry…”

“Sorry for what?”  Dean asked, a frown on his face intimidating everyone in the room.

Sam paused, gathering a breath.  “Marshall Hall… died at 4:17.”

Dean clenched his jaw, shaking his head.   “The exact time I was healed.”

Sam sighed, rubbing his chin.  “Yeah.  So, I put together a list of everyone Roy has healed, six people over the past year, and I cross-checked them with the local orbits.”

Kara stepped up, finishing his sentence.  “Every time someone was healed, someone else died.  And each time, the victim died of the same symptom Le Grange was healing at the time.”

Lyra folded her arms.  “Someone’s healed of cancer, someone else dies of cancer?”

Sam nodded, standing from his chair to meet Dean eye-to-eye.  “Somehow, Le Grange is trading one life for another.”

Dean swallowed hard.  “Wait wait wait… so, Marshall Hall died to save me?”  That was exactly what he was afraid of.

Sam tried shaking his head and justifying the incident.  “Dean… the guy probably would’ve died anyway and someone else would have been healed.”

Dean pointed a finger at Sam, standing defensively.  “You never should have brought me here.”

Lyra came up behind Dean, her voice quiet.  “Dean, he was just trying to save your life.”

Dean yelled, turning away from Sam, pushing Lyra away and looking out the window. “Now some guy is dead because of me!”

Nobody knew what to say.  Sam dropped his head.  “I didn’t know.”

After a few moments, Kara broke the silence.  “What we still don’t understand is, how is Roy doing it?  How is he trading a life for a life?”

You could almost hear their minds’ cogs turning in thought.  Suddenly Dean turned to face them again, his eyes sparkling with an idea.  “He’s not doing it.  Something else is doing it for him…”

 Kara and Lyra glanced at Dean with scrunched eyebrows.  “What do you mean?”

“The old man I saw on stage.  It had to be him.”  Dean ran a hand through his hair.  “There’s only one thing that can give and take life like that.”

 Lyra’s eyes lit up.  “A reaper?”

Dean rubbed his hands together.  “I’d bet on it.”

Sam shrugged, sighing as he pondered the thought.  “Do you really believe it’s THE grim reaper?  Like, angel of death, collect your soul, the whole deal?”

Lyra shook her head, raising her head slightly as she shared her wisdom on the subject.  “I highly doubt it…there is reaper lore in pretty much every culture on earth.  They go by a hundred different names…”

Dean interrupted her to finish her sentence.  “It’s possible that there’s more than one.”

Sam raised his eyebrows.  “But you said you saw a dude in a suit?”

Dean chuckled, raising her hands in a gesture of question.  “What?  You think he should’ve been working the black-robe thing?”

Kara groaned, shifting her weight from one leg to another.  “We saw it, Sam, the clock stopped.  Reapers stop time.”

Lyra nodded, almost jumping that they were on a trail.  “And, legend has it you can only see them when they’re coming at you!”

Dean clapped his hands together before pointing to Sam.  “Which is why I could see it and you couldn’t.”

Sam took a moment to think it over, taking a deep breath.  “Maybe…”

Dean grabbed Sam by the shoulders.  “There’s nothing else it could be, Sam!  The question is, how is Roy controlling the damn thing?”

Suddenly Sam’s eyes lit up, his eyebrows raised, and two dots connected in his mind.  “The cross!  I noticed it in the tent… I knew I had seen it before!”  Sam ran over to his bag, pulling out a deck of tarot cards, and shuffled through them until he finds the one he was looking for.  Death.  Showing it to Dean, he confirmed the same symbol was on the card.  “Tarot dates back to the early Christian era right, when some priests were still using magic and a few veered into the dark stuff.  Necromancy and how to push death away, and how to cause it, things like that.”

Kara nodded, a hand on her chin.  “So, Roy is using black magic to bind the reaper?”

Sam huffed.  “If he is he’s riding the whirlwind.  It’s like putting a dog leash on a great white… It tends to bite the hand that feeds it.”

“Then we need to stop Roy.”  Lyra stated.  “Before anyone else gets hurt.”

Kara’s shoulders slumped slightly.  It seemed like an impossible task, when he could just order the reaper to kill them, too.  “How?”

Dean paused, a dark thought crossing his mind.  He spoke softly. “You know how.”

Sam glared at his brother, a shiver running through him.  “We can’t just kill Roy, Dean…”

“The guy is playing God, deciding who lives and dies.  That’s a monster in my book.”  Dean turned to pack a back, his mind already made up.

Sam shook his head in disgust at the thought.  “Then we aren’t any better than him.”

Dean threw a bag on the floor.  “So if we can’t kill Roy and we can’t kill Death, what do we do?  Any bright ideas, college boy?”  He asked in a raised voice.

Lyra pitched in when Sam failed to respond.  “I’ve got one…”  Everyone turned to her, and she swallowed before speaking.  “Roy must be using some kind of black spell on the reaper… so if we figure out what it is then we can learn how to break it.”

This time, Kara got excited and spit out, “If Roy is using a spell, there might be a spell book.”

Dean checked his watch and bit his lip.  They had to hurry.  “We will have about fifteen minutes to search when we get there before service starts, so let’s try to hurry, okay?”  The group nodded and followed Dean as he headed out the door filled with a newfound determination.

~

Sam and Kara had ten minutes, tops.

They had snuck into Le Grange’s house looking for information on the reaper.  The timing wasn’t ideal for a proper search, but they did a quick sweep on each room, looking for any old texts, symbols or altars.  Kara peeked out the window to see Dean and Lyra disappear into the tent. “There they go.”

Sam nodded, giving a glance over every book on the shelves in the living room while Kara dug through drawers in the kitchen.  He clenched his jaw.  “I’ve got nothing…”  He called out, to which Kara appeared with a nod.

“Same.  Let’s go upstairs.”  Sam followed her as she bolted up the stairs, praying nobody was in the house.  They didn’t have time to be quiet.  They split up, each taking one of the two upstairs rooms to better utilize their time. 

Kara could hear Sam grunting from frustration from the other room.  “There isn’t anything here!”  He cried.  Kara looked over every object with questioning; from the bible on a nightstand to even, to her unfortunate discovery, a vibrator under the bed.

Shaking her head, she looked around the room.  There had to be something.  Roy couldn’t be controlling a reaper without a tool.  As she was literally spinning around in circles looking for clues, she froze.  Something about a bookshelf she had looked over moments before suddenly caught her attention.  Moving closer, she noticed all the books hadn’t been moved in ages, indicated by the hefty layer of dust on the shelf.  Except for one, which had a clean mark through the dust.  Pulling out the book, it appeared ancient, the lettering on the cover in a foreign language and appearing to be leather-bound.  She opened it up, a familiar symbol catching her eye and making her heart jump.  She called out to Sam.  “I’ve got something!”

He ran in from the other room, sighing with relief as she handed it over.  It was the same cross they were talking about.  Newspaper clippings nearly fell out as he flipped through the pages, pictures of people with controversial standings on political debates.  Recognizing a face, Sam showed one of the images to Kara.  “Does he look familiar to you?”

Kara’s eyes went wide.  “That’s the athlete who died of Dean’s heart attack!”

Flipping through the rest of the clippings, they were all people who they had previously suspected had died because of these ‘miracles’, except one man they recognized from the last time they were there who wasn’t dead.  Sam scrunched his eyebrows.  “Isn’t that the protestor?”

Kara nodded, peering out the window to confirm the identity of the man, who was still protesting outside the tent.  “He’s next.”

Sam pulled out his phone and dialed Dean.  He answered almost immediately. “Roy is choosing victims he sees as immoral, and I think I know who’s next on his list.  Remember that protester?”

Dean whispered.   “The guy in the parking lot?”

Sam glanced to Kara, worry written on his face.  “We know he’s next.”

Dean had a hard time holding back his voice.  “You need to find him!”

Sam rubbed his neck, nodding to himself and Kara.  “Yeah, we’ll find him, but you can’t let Roy heal anyone, all right?”

Dean agreed, and they hung up.  Kara glanced to Sam as he let out a breath he had been holding.  “Let’s go.”

~

Dean hangs up with Sam, turning to Lyra with a suspicious glance towards Roy Le Grange.  “They found an old book…”

Lyra clenched her fists tightly shut.  “I knew it!”

“Let me finish!”  Dean leaned in, whispering.  “The protestor outside is next.”

Lyra nodded, taking a deep breath as Le Grange prepared to call someone up.  Dean say Leyla in the audience, and prayed the reverend wasn’t going to call her up.  Maybe he jinxed it, for seconds later, her name was called.

“Layla, it’s finally your time.  Come up here dear child.” 

Dean muttered a curse word under his breath.  Lyra gripped on Dean’s arm in comfort.  “I’m sorry, Dean, but we have to stop him anyway.”

The audience clapped as the young woman stood, tears building in her eyes.  Lyra stood back and kept watch as Dean ran up to her, whispering just loud enough to Layla so only she could hear him over the cheers.  “You can’t go up there.”

Layla turned to Dean, her eyes narrowing at his words.  “What?”

“You can’t let Roy heal you.  If you do, something bad is going to happen.”  Dean pleaded, praying she would listen to him.  His heart tightened as she shook her head, stepping away from him.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve been waiting months for this.  I’m not going to give up now.”

Dean grabbed Leyla’s arm, holding her back.  “I’m serious.  You can’t do this!”

Fear filled the blonde girl’s eyes as she had to pry herself from Dean.  She had no words to express the betrayal she felt. Dean was healed, so why was he trying to prevent her from the same?  The reverend’s wife came up to them, taking Layla’s hand with a smile, her eyes glaring at Dean.  “Come, it’s time.”

The audience continued to cheer as Leyla was brought up on stage.  Muttering to himself, Dean turned to Lyra, eyes wide as he shrugged and mouthed “What now?”

Lyra’s head whipped around as she looked for anything to distract or stall the reverend with.  Suddenly her eyes brightened with an idea, just as the reverend was raising his hands in the air to start his prayer.  “FIRE!”  She yelled, everyone stopping to turn and look at her. 

Dean saw the fear in her eyes at being stared at, so he shouted it again for her.  “The tent’s on fire!!”

The reverend tried to get people to calmly exit the tent, but it was chaos.  Dean called up Sam again, avoiding being swept by the stream of people who were flooding towards the exit.  “We stopped it.”  A glance of relief was shared between him and Lyra.

Except, they hadn’t.  Not quite.

~

Sam and Kara were running around in the parking lot, looking for the protester when they heard screaming.  Kara’s eyes caught sight of some movement through a van window, and found the protestor there, cowering in fear.  Looking around frantically, she didn’t see anything.  “Where is it?!”  She yelled, pulling on the protester’s shirt.  Where he pointed, they ran in the opposite direction.  She caught a glimpse of Sam a few rows down and called out “It’s still after him!!” as she was running.

Sam’s heart sped up as he dialed his brother, looking over to the flood of people who were exiting the tent.  When he heard Dean pick up, he didn’t even wait for an answer before he spoke in a panicked voice.  “It didn’t work!”

“What?!”  Dean questioned, audibly shaken. 

Sam shook his head, his arms flailing.  The “It must not be the reverend… the reaper, it’s still after the protester!!”

~

Dean turned to Lyra, swearing.  “It didn’t work!”

The two glanced around the tent.  The reverend was outside apologizing to his demographic.  Sam must be right, it isn’t the reverend casting the spell.  Lyra’s eyes caught sight of a figure standing just behind the wall hiding the speaker and filming equipment.  She ran, Dean following close behind, grabbing hold of the figure’s shoulder and whipping her around.  The lady stopped her chanting as fear filled her eyes for a split second.  She was holding a cross, the same cross that was on the table on stage, and the one they found on the death tarot card.  And, above all, it was the reverend’s wife, Sue Ann.

Sue Ann smirked, yelling for help before Lyra and Dean could get over their initial shock.  “Help!! Help me!!”

Lyra and Dean try to rip the cross away, but she swiftly tucked it into her shirt just out of reach as the guards ran in, pulling Dean and Lyra away from the woman.  She glared daggers at the hunters as the police held them.  One of the police men reached for his handcuffs.  “What would you like us to do with them, ma’am?”

Sue Ann crosses her arms, looking them over for a minute.  “You can let them go…”  Lyra and Dean exchange an angered glance as the police released their grips on them.  “I won’t press charges, so long as they leave us in peace.  This boy is just confused and looking for answers, that’s all.  Ain’t that right, Dean?”

Dean swallowed hard, biting his tongue.  “Yeah…”

The cops glared at them.  “If you show your faces here again, we’re gunna have to put the fear of God in ya, you hear?”

Dean shook his head, turning his back to the authorities.  “Sure, got it.”  He grabbed Lyra’s arm and pulled her out into the parking lot with him.  They were met by Kara and Sam, who had confused looks on their faces.

Kara ran a hand through her hair, taking deep breaths from the run she just made.  “What did you do?  The reaper suddenly backed off at the last second…”

Dean lowered his voice to a whisper.  “It’s the wife… Lyra saw her and stopped her.”

Dean, Sam and Lyra quietly chatted about what they were going to do about the cross, when Sue Ann obviously wasn’t going to let that object out of reach.  Kara’s ears picked up the reverend’s voice over the chatting, as he was whispering to Layla.  What she heard gave her goosebumps.

“I deeply apologize.  Come back after supper, I promise you, you shall be healed.”

They wouldn’t have much time to figure this out.

~

After the incident, the police personally escorted Dean’s vehicle and all his passengers off the property.  They stopped back at their hotel to do some thinking.  Sam was typing away fast on his computer while he studied the book they found, Lyra and Kara sat on the bed, jotting down notes in a notebook, and Dean stood, pacing the room.  “So, Roy really believes…”  Kara muttered.

Dean nodded, running a hand through his hair.  “I don’t think he has any idea what his wife’s doing.”

Sam shook his head in disbelief.  “Kara found this hidden in their library.  It’s ancient, written by a priest who went dark side.  There’s a binding spell in here for trapping a reaper.”  He handed it over to Dean once he found what he was looking for.

Dean flipped through the pages, unable to read a single word.  “Must be a hell of a spell.”

Sam shut his computer, turning to Dean.  “Yeah.  You got to build a black altar, with some seriously dark stuff.”

Kara scoffed, throwing her notebook down.  “To cross a line like that, the preacher’s wife… black magic, murder… it’s pure evil.”

Dean sighed, taking a seat.  “No.  It’s desperate.”  He got up moments later only to start pacing again.  “Her husband was dying, she would have done anything to save him.  She must have been using the binding spell to keep the reaper away from Roy.”

Lyra nodded, writing everything down of importance they spoke about.  “Cheating Death.  Literally.”

Sam shook his head, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.  “But Roy is alive, so why is she still using the spell?”

Kara shrugged.  “To force the reaper to kill people she thinks are immoral?”

Lyra rolled her eyes.  “May god save us from even half the people who think they’re doing god’s work.”

Dean stopped pacing, looking to Sam with worried eyes.  “We got to break that binding spell.”

“Sue Ann had a Coptic cross like this.  I think when she dropped it, that’s when the reaper backed off.”  Lyra mentioned, setting down her notes.

“So do we need to find the cross or destroy the altar?”  Dean asked.

“Probably both.”  Sam guessed, shoving things into his bag before standing up, ready to head out the door.  Lyra and Kara stood, ready to join them.

Kara could feel the tension rising.  “Whatever we do, we gotta do it soon.”  She said just as Dean was opening the door to leave, her words sending guilt rushing through him once more.  “Roy’s healing Layla tonight.”

~

 As the group pulled up to the tent, there was only a handful of cars present in the ‘parking’ lot.  As they exited the Impala, Dean saw the same car that Leyla had gotten into earlier. “That’s Layla’s car.  She’s already here.  Let’s go…”

The group crept their way to the tent, knowing if any guards were to find them, they would be arrested.  Dean peeked into the tent, unable to see their suspect.  He cursed to himself. “Where’s Sue Ann?” 

Sam glanced back, seeing police guarding the house.  That’s must be where she is.  “The House.”

Dean sighed, sizing up the scrawny police officers with a smirk.  “Go find Sue Ann, I’ll catch up…”

Kara watched Dean run off towards the police with wide eyes.  “What are you?”

Lyra holds her back, keeping her quiet as they watch Dean approach the police, before they start running after him in a chase.  Dean had a smile on his face as he ran.

Kara pushed Lyra and Sam towards the house.  “I’ll keep an eye on the tent, you guys go!!” 

Lyra glanced wide-eyed at Kara, who only shot a small wink before chasing after the taller Winchester.  Glancing over she saw Dean had led the police into a row of mobile homes, so nobody would see as Sam led the two of them around the sides of the house, where he found a cellar door.  “It has to be down here…”  To their surprise, it was open.  Sam glanced wearily to Lyra, who merely shrugged before they descended the stairs into the darkness.

Feeling around the wall, Sam found and flicked on a light switch.  In front of them stood a table, covered in bones, blood, ancient symbols and other various artifacts.  They approached it slowly, Sam’s eyes darting around the basement for any signs of movement.  Lyra picked up a photo that was sitting in the middle of a summoning circle.  It was a photo of Dean.

Her heart raced, showing it to Sam.  “Dean’s next!”  She exclaimed.  Suddenly she saw a figure standing in the shadows and shrieked in fear.

Sam turned to see what Lyra was freaking out about, and there stood Sue Ann.  She had a wicked smile on her face, and a gun in her hand, pointed at the two of them.  Sam guarded Lyra, pushing her back until he was close enough to the altar to flip it, destroying the table and everything on it.  Sue Ann turned and ran.  Sam and Lyra chased her, their heartbeats pounding in their ears as they realized she was going to lock them down here.  It was a trap.

Just as Sam reached the top of the steps, the door slammed shut on their faces.  He pushed against the doors as hard as he could, but he heard Sue Ann slide something between the handle, a sly laugh coming from the other side.   “Can’t you see? The Lord chose me to punish the wicked and Dean is wicked!” Sam let out a frustrated yell as he hit on the doors some more.  “It’s God’s will!!”

Lyra winced as Sam continues to beat at the cellar doors.  “Sam, calm down!”

Sam shook his head, slamming his shoulders into the doors.  “We need to save Dean!!”

Lyra clenched her jaw, using all her strength to pull Sam away from the door.  He looked at her with confused eyes, for she had never gotten physical before.  “If you want to get out of here, you need to calm down!!”  Sam was stunned silent.  “Now help me look for something we can use down here, okay?”

Sam nodded, following Lyra and heading back down the stairs to look for things they could use to get out.  Guilt filled Sam to the brim, making him sick to his stomach.  He could honestly throw up.  “This is all my fault…”

Lyra shook her head, pausing to look up to Sam as she dug through a toolbox.  “Sam…”

Sam’s hazel eyes wavered.  “No, don’t say it isn’t, because it is.  An innocent person is dead because I made Dean come here, and now he’s going to die anyway…”  Sam swallowed, his fear constricting his throat.  He closed his eyes, unable to search anymore.  Before he knew it, Lyra was giving him a hug from behind.  He opened his eyes, trying to peer around to see what she was doing.  “Lyra?”

Lyra tightened her grip around him, avoiding eye contact.  “I promise you.  It isn’t your fault.  Everything is going to work out.  Dean’s going to be fine, Kara’s going to be fine, we’re all going to be fine.”

Sam was again at a loss for words, and even though he was calming down, his heart raced faster still.  Why did her touch mean so much to him?  “You can’t know that…” He whispered.

When Lyra released him from her grasp, she showed off the sledgehammer she found, handing it over.  They were going to bust their way out.  “Yes, I do.”

~

Dean was on his way back to the tent to regroup with Kara when he heard footsteps behind him.  Assuming it was the cops, he turned around with a slight shrug and a sly smile.  “Can’t get enough of me can…”  He stopped, realizing it wasn’t the cop.  Instead, it was the same reaper he saw before when he was healed.  He bolted, uncaring of his direction.  But everywhere he turned he saw the reaper, drawing ever nearer. 

On the backside of the tent, Kara had been watching as Sue Ann walked up to the tent.  Thankfully, she hadn’t been spotted.  She crept as quietly as she could, closing the distance between her and Sue Ann as she began her chanting.  When she knew she could reach she jumped forward, her hand reaching out and grabbing the cross from Sue Ann’s hands and throwing it on the ground, stepping on it with a satisfying crack.

Kara gazed with the wrath of a thousand men as Sue Ann’s eyes filled with fear.  “What have you done?!”

Kara chuckled.  “God’s work.”

Suddenly, Sue Ann dropped to the ground, the life seemingly being drawn out of her.  For a split second, Kara saw the reaper, who gave her a slight nod, before sucking the rest of the life out of the woman and disappearing. 

Sue Ann was dead.

Just as the reaper fled, Sam and Lyra appeared, running towards Kara.  She gave them a thumbs up as they got close. “The reaper obviously didn’t like being controlled…”  She smiled, only to still see fear in Sam and Lyra’s eyes.  “What’s wrong?”

“Did she finish?!”  Sam blurted, looking around wildly.

“No, why?”  Kara looked at him uneasily.

“Dean was supposed to be next.”  Kara gasped, and the group spent the next ten minutes running around and looking for Dean.  They all breathed a sigh of relief when they found him, limping his way to the Impala.  It had been a very close call.

Dean looked them over with a nod.  “Glad everyone’s okay.”  He opened the driver’s door, and plopped himself into the seat.  Silence filled the car until Dean asked the question everyone was hoping he wouldn’t. “We did the right thing here didn’t we?”

After a brief pause, Sam placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder.  He glanced back to Lyra to give a silent nod of thanks.  “Of course we did.”

~

The hunters went back to the hotel, pained for the fate Layla still had, that Dean had escaped from. Lyra and Sam could feel the tension in the air around Dean, and opted to head out for food instead of dwell on their decisions.  Kara decided to stay.

As soon as they left, Dean sat down on the bed, his head in his hands.  “If Roy would’ve picked Layla instead of me, she’d be healed right now.”

Kara sighed, plopping down on the bed next to him.  “Dean, don’t.”

Dean groaned, guilt eating away at him.  “She’s gunna die in a couple months now because of me.”

Even though it made her heart race, Kara wrapped her arms around Dean in a show of comfort since Sam and Lyra weren’t here to make fun of her.  Kara could feel Dean tense under her touch, but she didn’t withdraw the show of affection.  “What’s happening to her is horrible… but we did the right thing.  Nobody deserves to play God.”  She spoke with confidence.  Dean ever so slightly leaned into Kara.  His heart was pounding in his ears and he hoped his hands were covering the flush on his cheeks in that moment.  “Hell, half of the time I don’t think God is even paying attention.” 

He made a small chuckle at the back of his throat.  “Yeah.  I suppose you’re right.”  Truly thankful for her words, he buried his face in Kara’s blonde hair and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her back.  He breathed in her scent and sighed, holding her close.  Dean thought to himself, long and hard, before coming to one single conclusion.

_I should just be happy to be here right now._

He closed his eyes, thankful for the way the events had unfolded for him.  Because here, in Kara's arms…

Dean belonged here.


	9. The Benders

“I know that you are just doing your job, but the police have been here all week already.  I don’t see why we have to go through this again.” The exasperated mother said, clutching her son closer to her chest. “The more he tells his story, the more he believes it’s true.”

Dressed in state police uniforms Sam nodded. “Mrs. McKay, we know you spoke with the local authorities, but this seems like a matter for the state police.” Sam pulled out a notebook. “Don’t worry how crazy it sounds Kevin, just tell us what you saw.”

Taking a deep breath, the young boy starts his story. “I was up late watching TV when I heard this weird noise.”

Dean tipped his head in curiosity “What did it sound like?”

Evan scrunched his face as he tried to remember. “It sounded like a monster.”

The brothers shared a look before the mother interrupted her son.  “Tell the officers what you were watching on TV.”

The boy looked at his feet trying to hide his embarrassment “Godzilla V.S. Mothra.”

Dean let out a short chuckle of amusement. “My favorite Godzilla movie, so much better than the original, right.”

Evan’s face lit up at the comment. “Totally!”

Dean’s eyes flashed mischievously, pointing at his brother. “He likes the remake.” Evan gave Sam a horrified look. “Yuck!”

Sam gave his brother a classic bitch face before rolling his eyes. “Evan did you see what this thing was?”

Evan’s face dropped all humor leaving him. “No, but I saw it grab Mr. Jenkins and pull him underneath the car!”

“Then what?” Dean asked writing more notes onto his pad.

“Then I saw it take him away. I heard the monster leaving. It made a growling noise. Like a whining growl.”

Dean tapped his pen on his pad, deep in thought.  “Thank you for your time ma’am.  We will call you if we have any further questions.”  Sam thanked, leading his brother to the door.  Once outside the boys headed to the Impala where the Magnum sisters were leaning up against the frame, waiting for them.

“So, what do you think Dean?” Sam asked, scratching the back of his neck.

Dean sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. “I think we need to find a place to talk this out, maybe the girls will have some sort of idea. Besides, I could really use a beer.” 

“You always say that.” Sam mumbled, making his way to the passenger side of the car.

“Hell yeah!” Dean grinned giving a loud laugh when his brother rewarded him with a roll of his eyes.

 

~At the bar~

 

Sitting at a lone bar table at Kugel’s Keg the four hunters pondered about the strange case in front of them.  “So local law enforcement have not ruled out foul play, apparently there were signs of a struggle.” Sam said as he browsed through John Winchester’s journal.

Dean looked back at his brother before throwing a dart at the target.  Grinning when it hit close to the bullseye. “You know they could be right.  It could be just a kidnapping, maybe this isn’t our kind of gig.”

Lyra leaned over Sam’s shoulder to get a closer look at the journal. “Yeah maybe not… but your dad did mark the area as a possible hunting grounds of a Phantom Attacker.”

“Why would he even do that?” Kara asked before she threw her dart. Dean scowled when the dart hit dead center making this her third win. Winking at Dean “Four out of Five?”

Ignoring her sister Lyra continued. “Well, he found a lot of local folklore about a dark figure that comes out at night, grabs people and then vanishes.” Sam nodded.  “He found this too, this county has more missing persons per capita than anywhere else in the state.”

“That is weird.” Dean mumbled before turning back to his game with Kara. 

“Don’t Phantom Attackers normally snatch people from their beds?” Kara asked, handing Dean his darts. “Jenkins was taken from a parking lot.”

“Well there are all kinds,” Sam stated flipping through his dad’s journal. “Spring-heeled Jack Phantom Gassers, they take people anywhere anytime.” Sam looked up in time to see Dean’s little celebration as he made a good score. “Look Dean, I don’t even know if this is our type of gig.”

“I think that we should at least take another look around tomorrow.” Lyra cut him off before Sam could distract Dean from the game.  Watching him lose to her little sister was proving to be quite the entertainment.

“Agreed,” Kara chimed in making her last shot, another clear victory. “I say a motel five miles back.”

“Woah woah, easy. Let’s stay for another round.” Lyra shot back.

Sam started to pack up his notes. “No, we should get an early start.”

“Wow, you guys really know how to have fun.” Dean laughed at Kara’s dirty look. “Alright Grandma I will meet you out at the car.  I just need to take a leak first.”

Lyra nodded grabbing her coat “I’ll catch up with you guys after I pay the tab.”

Sam and Kara grinned at each other, gathering their stuff they headed out the door to the car chatting about the case. Looking around the dark deserted parking lot they both had the sense that they were being watched.  Putting down his father’s journal Sam grabbed out a flashlight and started to scan the area.

“You don’t think…” Kara trailed off when Sam held his index finger to his lips. Crouching down Sam looked underneath the neighboring vehicle. He let out a frightened shout before laughing at Kara’s startled expression.

“There is a stupid cat under there.” He said as he stood up brushing off his hands on his pants. “For a minute though I was actually a little worried.”

Kara grimaced scanning the parking lot with her eyes. “I don’t know, something doesn’t feel quite right.” Shaking her head, she followed Sam to the front of the Impala. “Maybe I’m just overly paranoid.” While the two continued to chat they both failed to notice the dark figures watching them.

 ~

Lyra and Dean walked out of the bar, complaining on how they should have stayed for another round. Making their way over to the car, the conversation halted when they realized their siblings were not there. “Sammy?!” Dean called turning around eyes frantically searching for his brother.

“Kara?  Kara, where are you?” Lyra yelled running to look behind the building.  When she found no trace of her sister she ran back over to Dean, heart pounding. “I found nothing, please tell me you have some kind of lead.”

Dean shook his head before pointing to the security camera above them. “No one has seen them. All we can hope is that the security camera caught something.”

 

~The Cage~

Sam woke with a start, eyes struggling to adjust to the overwhelming darkness surrounding him. When the world began to focus, Sam noticed the bars around him. He could feel the panic seep in, he was in a cage.  Whatever had taken Jenkins had taken him too.  Sam groaned as memories of what happened began to come back.  He remembered being at the bar with Dean and the girls and walking out to the car with Kara. “Kara!” Sam shot to his feet taking in the room around him.  There across the room from his cell sat two more cages. In one was a man he never met and in the other lay Kara Magnum.

 

~Lyra and Dean~

After much debate and discussion Lyra and Dean decided that heading to the local sheriff’s department was their best option. Before long they found themselves sitting at an officer’s desk.  “So, what can I do for you officer’s Washington and officer Barnum?”

Dean grinned as he took his badge back.  “I am currently working a missing person’s case.”

The officer passed the two hunters a strange look. “I didn’t know the Jenkins case was being covered by the state police.”

“Oh no, this is about someone else.” Lyra quickly cut in.  It’s his cousins actually.”

Dean nodded. “Yeah we were having a few down at this bar last night and we haven’t seen them since.”

The cop gave them a suspicious look.  “Does your cousins have a drinking problem?”

“Sam and Kara? Two beers and they are trying to outdo each other in karaoke. No, they weren’t drunk, they were taken.”

“Alright.” The officer said tapping at her computer. “What are their names?”

“Sam Winchester and Kara Magnum.”  Lyra supplied helpfully.

“Winchester and Magnum, like the gun?” The officer question with a raise of her eyebrow.

“The very same.” Dean said nervously tugging at his shirt collar, he really didn’t like cops.

“Samuel Winchester…” The cop put the name into the computer.  “Do you know his brother Dean Winchester died in St. Louis and was suspected of murder?”

“Oh yeah, Dean.” Lyra nervously laughed. “He was kind of the black sheep of the family.” Shrugging as Dean gave her a surprised look. “Handsome though.”

“Uh-huh.” The officer said giving them both an unamused look. “Well, neither of them are showing up in any current field reports.”

“Oh, we already have a lead.” Lyra quipped. “We saw a surveillance camera on the highway.”

“Oh really, county traffic camera?” The officer asked surprised.

Dean shifted in his chair uncomfortably. “Yeah, we are hoping the camera picked up whatever took them.”

“Well, I have access to the traffic cameras at the county works department. Well how about we start this the right way.  I need you two to fill this out, missing persons report.” She mumbled digging through her stack of papers.

“Look officer, they are family. I kind of look out for the kids.  You need to let us go with you.” Dean pleaded, trying to charm her with his eyes.

The officer shrugged, completely unfazed. “Sorry, I can’t let you guys do that.”

Lyra stood up, fitting herself between the officer and Dean. “Well, tell me something… your county has a fair share of missing persons cases. Any of them ever make it back?” She nodded when the officer looked down in defeat. “Sam and Kara are our responsibility and they are coming back.  We ARE bringing them back.” 

 

~Sam and Kara~

“Kara? Kara wake up!” Sam had been trying for ten minutes now to wake up his best friend.  It was too dark to see if she had any life-threatening injuries. “Come on Kara, you need to wake up so we can get the hell out of here.”  Sam sagged in relief when he finally heard his friend begin to stir.

“Ugh, Sam?” Kara groaned as her head throbbed in protest. “Sam what the hell? Where are we?” Kara could feel her heart rate spike as the cold wet darkness began to seep into her skin.  Images that she had long buried surged themselves to the front of her mind.

“I don’t know, we seem to stuck inside some abandoned building.” Sam said as he surveyed the cage, he was in, pushing on one of the walls testing its strength. Oblivious to Kara’s building panic he continued. “Why trap us though? I would think they would kill us right away.”

Kara pushed herself into a sitting position cradling her head in her hands as a memory pushed its way to the surface. _“And you will stay in there until you have learned some respect!”_ a harsh voiced echoed followed by a harsh slam of a door.  A young Kara cried as pitch black engulfed her. Curling up to the far corner of her dog cage she wrapped her arms around her knees.  Winter nights were always the worst times for punishment.  It was impossible to stay warm and the harsh metal wires of her cage always stole the heat from her body.  Her only company were the rats and spiders, if she was lucky, they would ignore her tonight. But when was she ever that lucky… no, they would definitely come.  They always did. This was a stark reminder that she was alone in this world, unloved and forgotten with no place to call home.

“Kara, hey Kara, please look at me!”  Sam frantically called out to his friend, but she couldn’t seem to hear him, trapped in some unseen world.  Sam watched as his friend descended into deep sobs, her entire body shaking as she hugged herself.

“No, I’m sorry! I promise I’ll be good!” Kara cried to a person only her eyes could see. “Please don’t leave me!”

Sam’s heart ached at his best friends’ distress. He watched in horror as she began to scratch at her skin. Crying out to her when he saw she was drawing blood. “Kara stop! What are you doing!  Snap out of it!”

The pinch of pain and a faint voice filled with distress cracked through her nightmare.  This voice was warm, this voice was safe. Kara froze listening for the voice again. “Kara please, talk to me!” She knew that voice, it was Sam.

“Sam?”

“Yes, Kara listen to me. I need you to focus, whatever you are seeing isn’t real.” Sam yelled, banging on his cell in frustration. It pissed him off that he couldn’t reach his friend and protect her from whatever was haunting her.

Kara huffed out a breath. “I’m sorry, I’m ok.”  Reaching up she pulled herself to her feet cringing when her fingers met the harsh cold texture of the cell bars.

“What the hell was that?” Sam asked eyeing her in concern.

Kara looked around taking in her environment. “Sorry, it's been a while since I had an episode.  I truly thought I had gotten past it.”

“Episode?” Sam asked wearily.

Kara cringed at the scared sound in Sam’s voice.  She was tired of people looking down at her, feeling like a small helpless child. “My last foster family was abusive. If any of us did something that pissed them off or broke a rule we were punished.”  Kara took in a shuddering breath as she tried to block out the memories.  “I got in trouble a lot.  Stealing food, medicine, clean socks, stuff like that. Our punishment was to be locked downstairs in the basement. There was this dog cage, it was small enough where we couldn’t stand or stretch all the way out laying down.  I don’t know how long we were kept down there. It could be days to a week or two.”

“Oh Kara..” Sam started before her look caught him off.

“We wouldn’t be fed, there were no blankets to keep us warm.  But the worst part were the rats and bugs.  They would crawl all over me and bite at me, I couldn’t get away.”

“Kara I am so, so sorry that happened to you.  I never knew.” Sam choked out.

“Well, not exactly something I like to talk about.  I’m not a scared helpless little girl anymore. It’s just waking up her I felt like I was there all over again.  It just drug me back there…”

Sam nodded in understanding.  “Not to be unsympathetic but we need to come up with a plan to get out of here.”

Kara wiped at her face nodding.  “Right, what’s first..” She trailed off when they heard a moan.

 

~Dean and Lyra~

Dean and Lyra sat out on a park bench waiting impatiently for officer Kathleen Hudak. After what seemed like an eternity Kathleen came back with papers in her hands. “Greg, Charity, I think we got something.” Handing the papers to Dean she continued. “These traffic cams take a picture every three seconds, it’s part of the amber alert program. These images were all taken around the time your cousins were taken.”

Dean narrowed his eyes in frustration shaking his head. “This isn’t what we are really looking for.”

“Wait, wait, look.” Kathleen said grabbing the papers and pointing at a picture of a van. “This one was taken right after Sam and Kara left the bar. Look at the back end of that thing. Now look at the plate.”

Dean looked at the picture more closely.  Compared to the old run-down van, the plates were brand new. “Those plates look new… it’s probably stolen.”

Kathleen smiled. “Exactly, that means that rust bucket is probably involved.”

As they talked a loud whining growl sounded from behind them.  Lyra whirled around to find the source of the sound. She wasn’t entirely surprised when she saw an old rusted black van making its way down the street. “Greg, did you hear that engine?”

“Yeah…” He answered with an eyebrow raised.

“Kind of like a whining growl, wouldn’t you say?” Lyra hedged, trying to get her friend to catch on.

Dean’s eyes lit up as he made the connection. “I’ll be damned.”

 

~Sam and Kara~

The friends turned to the third cell where the man inside began to stir. “You’re alive?!” Sam called out clearly startled. “Hey you ok?”

“Do I look like I’m ok?” The man snapped back, sitting up all the way.

“Where are we?” Kara asked making her way to the edge of her cell to see the man better.

“I don’t know, the country, I think. Smells like the country.” The man replied, squinting at his new roommates.

“You’re Alvin Jenkins.” Sam sighed and shook his head.  “We were looking for you.”

“Oh yeah? Well no offence but this is a piss poor rescue.” Jenkins sneered.

“Yeah well, my sister and friend our out there looking for us so…” Kara started.

“So, they aren’t going to find us!  We are in the middle of nowhere. Waiting for them to come back and do God knows what to us.” Jenkins said dryly.

“What are they? Have you seen them?” Sam asked eyeing the man intently.

Jenkins looked at Sam as if he had two heads.  “What are you talking about?’

“What ever grabbed us, what did they look like?” Kara asked growing tired of the man’s attitude.

Jenkin’s eyes widened at the sound of the creaking door.  “See for yourself!” He hissed moving to the back of his cage.

Two men walked into the room surveying their prisoners.  Kara flung herself against the back wall when the one man smashed a bat against the front of her cell.  Laughing at her before he moved on.  Crashing the bat against Jenkins cage the man drove him to the far back of his cell while his partner busied himself unlocking the door. “Leave me alone! Don’t you touch me, leave me alone!” Jenkins cried as his door was swung open.  The partner left a tray of food inside before closing and locking the door again. Jenkins waited until the men where a safe distance away before attacking his food. Sam watched intently as the men made sure the cells were secure, only jumping when the man with the bat hit his cage.

Sam stared after the men in shock before meeting Kara’s confused gaze.  “I’ll be damned, they’re just people.”

“Yeah,” Jenkins mumbled mouth full. “What did you expect?”

“How often do they feed you?” Kara asked, staring after their captures.

“Once a day.” Jenkins answered taking another bite of his food. “They use that thing there to open the cage.” Jenkins pointed at a large metal box.

“That they only time you see them? “Sam asked, moving to get a better look at the box.

“So far but I’m waiting.” Jenkins responded coldly.

“Waiting for what?” Kara asked, a shiver running down her spine.

“Ned Beatty time, man!”

Sam scoffed. “I think that is the least of your worries, man.”

“Oh yeah, what do you think they want?!” Jenkins asked sarcastically.

Kara watched as Sam reached through his bars to grasp a metal pipe. “Depends on who they are?”

“They are a bunch of psycho hillbilly rednecks if you ask me.” Jenkins spits. “Looking for love in all the wrong places.”

Sam didn’t answer as he continued to pull on the pipe. Grunting as he strained for it to break. Kara watched him intently hoping that whatever he was planning was going to work or at least buy them enough time for Lyra and Dean to find them.

 

~Lyra and Dean~

Lyra sat in the back of the police cruiser listening to Dean chat with officer Kathleen. “Ok.” Kathleen pointed as she drove. “There is a traffic cam, the next one is in the next fifteen miles.  That camera didn’t pick up your van.”

Dean scowled looking at the map in front of him. “So, that means it must have pulled off somewhere. But I don’t see any roads on here.”

Kathleen nodded “That’s because a lot of properties here have their own back roads.”

Lyra rubbed her temples, willing the building migraine to go away. “Oh perfect.”

A beep on Kathleen’s computer system sounded. Both hunters were too distracted to notice the message she received. The number on their badges were stolen.  Kathleen instantly tensed wondering how to approach the subject to the strangers riding in her vehicle. “So, Greg.  I ran your badge number, its routine procedure.” She began to pull her vehicle to the side of the road.  “They just got back to me. HQ says it was stolen.  Both of your badges, actually.”

“Crap.” Lyra muttered waiting to take on Kathleen to protect her friend.

“Come on you two, step out of the car.”

“Wait, wait, look if you want to arrest us that’s fine.  We will cooperate I swear, but please we need to find Sam and Kara.”  Dean begged, giving the officer puppy-dog eyes.

Kathleen narrowed her eyes at Dean.  “I don’t even know who you two are.  Or even if this Sam and Kara are even missing.”

Lyra interrupted, leaning not the front seat. “Look into my eyes and tell me that we are lying.”

“Identity theft, you both are impersonating officers.” Kathleen countered.

Dean began to feel desperate. “Look when we were younger, I pretty much pulled Sam from a fire and ever since then I have felt responsible for him. Like it is my job to keep him safe.”

Lyra wiped her eyes as memories flooded back. “Kara was always my responsibility. Until that day I lost her… I just found her, and I don’t think I could take losing her again.”

Dean turned to Kathleen, pleading. “I’m just afraid if we don’t find them fast, something bad is going to happen to them!  Please help me find my family!”

Kathleen sighed her grip tightening on the steering wheel. “I’m sorry, you’ve given me no choice. I have to take you guys in.” Just before she pulled away her eyes caught a picture on her visor. Memories of her brother tugging at her heart.  Mentally cursing herself Kathleen gripped the steering wheel, pulling the vehicle back onto the road. “After we find Kara and Sam.”

 

~Sam and Kara~

Kara paced back and forth in her cell, listening to the sound of Sam straining as he pulled on the pipe.

“What is your name again?” Jenkins asks watching Sam curiously.

Sam continues to furiously pull on the pipe. “Sam.”

“Why don’t you give it up Sammy.” Jenkins laughs out, leaning his head tiredly against his cell.

“Don’t. Call. Me. Sammy.” Each word was punctuated by a harsh pull.  Sam was rewarded as the pipe finally gave way from the ceiling.

Kara moved to the edge of her cage trying to see what Sam broke from the ceiling.  “What is that?”

Sam grabbed the metal from the bottom of the cage.  “It is a bracket.”

Jenkins scoffed. “A bracket! Thank god we are saved.” Jenkins jumped as his lock was released. “You must have created a short.” Quickly moving to his door, Jenkins poked his head out to see if the cost was clear.

Kara gripped the bars of her cage tensing at the scene unfolding before her.  “Jenkins, I think you need to get back in there.”

“What why?” Jenkins asked slowly moving towards the door.

“She’s right, something doesn’t feel that.”

Moving closer to the door Jenkins shook his head. “No, I just want to get out of here.”

“Yeah, we got that.” Kara agreed “But that was too easy.”

“Look I’m going to get out of here and I promise I will send help. Don’t worry.”

Sam got up pounding his fist on the cage. “Jenkins, I’m serious don’t go.  This feels like a trap.”

“Bye Sammy!” Jenkins said making his way out of the door.

“Jenkins!” Kara shouted after him. “Shit, Sam what are we going to do.”

Sam sat back in the cage running a hand through his hair.  “Hope this isn’t a trap.” But his tone didn’t even convince himself.

As the two sat in their cages it didn’t take long before their silence was broken by Jenkins blood curdling scream.  Kara pinched her eyes closed her heart hammering in her chest. _Dean, Lyra please hurry!_

 

~Dean and Lyra~

Dean was growing anxious as they continued their search.  They had been driving for hours with no luck. It took them a while to ditch Kathleen back at the station, but they had pressed their luck with the cop too far already. Lyra’s voice broke the silence all too suddenly, making him jump.

“Wait, pull off up here!” Lyra called from the back seat.  Dean shot Lyra a confused look but did as he was told. “I have a good feeling about this road.” Lyra muttered, looking down the road. “We need to check this out.”

“Alright, let's have a look.” Dean agreed following her lead.  The pair followed the road and was surprised to see a lot of junk cars and collapsing stables. The property expanded to reveal a run-down house. Dean gestured to the house and then the barn.  “Should we split up? One takes the house and the other take the barn.”

Lyra nodded. “Yeah, good plan. I’ll take the house.” Giving Dean one last glance Lyra made her way to the house.  Making her way up the porch her nose was assaulted by the smell of must and mold.  The wood under her feet creaked in protest under her weight.  “How could anyone possibly live in this house?” She muttered to herself.

Quietly Lyra opened the door and was greeted by a horrific sight. The house was decorated by dead animals and bones.  As she moved closer to the off-white objects, she could see that the bones were in fact human. Covering her mouth to mask her disgust Lyra moved on to inspect the pictures on the walls.  At first glance they looked like normal hunting photos but on closer look she noticed that the it wasn’t animals in the photos.  They were dead humans, the hunters in the photos had murdered and posed with dead people.  Lyra reached up and grabbed a photo.  Alvin Elkins with his throat cut.  “Demons I get, people are crazy!”

A squeak of the floorboard stole Lyra’s attention from the gruesome trophy case.  Turning around Lyra was greeted by a young girl.  Frozen, the young girl stared at Lyra, hatred burning in her eyes.  Before Lyra had a chance to even move the girl screamed. “Daddy!” Shit.

Lyra rushed towards the door and was cornered by two large men.  “Jared, grabbed her!” The one man yelled at the other.  Lyra kicked out at the large man that rushed her, her foot connecting with his chest sending him into the wall where he collapsed.  Turning on her heel she ran back the way she came, but before she made through the doorway large hands grabbed her around her waist. “Missy, get Pa!”

Lyra shouted as she tried to elbow the man in his rib.  She was rewarded by the sound of the man losing his breath and loosening his grip. Twisting around she managed to connect her knee to his junk. The man dropped to his knees before she punched him in the face.  Lyra mentally celebrated her victory before rushing to the door.  She had to get out and warn Dean.

She only made it a few steps before she was struck by a blinding pain on her head and her world went dark.

 

~The Barn~

Sam slumped to the ground, his chest heaving from exertion. He doesn’t know how long he had been kicking at his cell wall, but it felt like an eternity. Sam closes his eyes trying to focus, he had to figure a way out of here.  Kara was counting on him, he couldn’t allow them to die here. He isn’t allowed much rest before a loud thud coming from Kara’s cage causes Sam’s eyes to fly open.

“Ow! What the hell are these things made out of?” Kara’s enraged voice called as she rubs her bloodied and bruised arm.

Before Sam could reply they, both heard the clang of the barn doors heavy lock releasing. Sam and Kara scramble to their feet, both tense waiting for their attackers. Kara felt her heart thundering in her chest as the sound of footsteps neared their cells.

“Sam?”

Sam let out a huge breath of relief when his brother came into view. They were saved.

Dean rushed to the front of his brother’s cage. “Are you hurt?” His green eyes scanning his brother’s body, looking for any sign of injury.

A huge smile breaks across his little brother’s face. “No, I’m fine.”

Dean punches his brother’s cell. “Damn it’s good to see you! Where is Kara?”

“I’m here!” Kara calls, sticking a bloodied hand through her bars so Dean could find her in the shadowed barn.  Sam nodded letting Dean know he could go to her, it wasn’t like he could go anywhere. Dean passes Sam one last look before heading over to the Magnum and gripping her hand.

“Kara, your arms?” Dean questions, rage filling him at the sight of the long gashes covering them.

Kara could have cried when she felt Dean’s hand grasp hers.  She used his presence to anchor herself, she could get through this. Dean and Lyra were here now.

“I’m fine.” Kara sighed. Her eyes dropping when she noticed that Dean didn’t believe her.  “I promise, I’ll explain it all later.”  Ignoring Dean’s questioning look, Kara’s gaze wandered around the barn, searching. “Where is Lyra?”

Dean let go of Kara’s hand.  “She went to search the house. We will meet up with her as soon as I can get the two of you out of here.” Looking at the cell walls his eyes landed on the locks. “Oh…” He whistled out. “These locks look like they are going to be a bitch.”

Sam nodded. “There is some kind of automatic control over there.” He pointed to the control box on the wall a crossed from his cage.

Dean moved over to the box. “Have you seen them yet?” He asked looking at the controls in front of him.

“Yeah, dude there just people.” Sam exclaimed, giving his brother surprise look.

Dean looked between the two caged hunters. “And they jumped you? Both of you?” Shaking his head in mock disappointment. “You must be getting a little rusty there kiddos.” Dean laughed as he caught Kara’s murderous look.  “What do they want?”

“We don’t know.  They let Jenkins go, but that seemed to be some kind of trap.” Kara answered, ignoring Dean’s dig.

“Well people are crazy.” Dean muttered before slamming the door to the control box close. “This thing takes a key; do you know where it is?”

“They must have it.” Sam said with a shrug.

Dean nodded. “All right I’ll have to go find it.  Just hold tight.”

“Hey, be careful, and make sure my sister is ok.” Kara said, gripping the bars tightly.

Dean’s eyes softened as he looked at her.  “Yeah, of course.”

Sam watched his brother leave.  He took a deep breath, for reasons he couldn’t explain he felt like his brother was walking into a whole lot of trouble.

 

~The House~

As Dean entered the house, he noticed it was far too quiet.  He could feel that something was off.  Where were the crazies that lived in the house? And more importantly, where was Lyra?  As Dean continued farther in the house, he noticed the giant hole in the wall; it looked like a large object was pushed forcefully into it. As Dean rounded the corner there in the center of the living room sat an unconscious Lyra.  She was bound to a chair, her head hung over her chest and her purple hair was matted with blood.  Rushing to his friend Dean crouched down to her side.

“Lyra? Lyra, can you hear me?” Lifting her head Dean inspected her wound.  It was a nasty gash but it wasn’t very deep. Despite that fact Dean could see it was still oozing blood.  Curse head wounds and their tendency to overly bleed.

“Come on Lyra, I need you to wake up.  I found Sammy and Kara, but they need our help to get them out.  We can’t do that if you won’t stop doing your sleeping beauty impression.” Dean continued to pat on his friends face desperate for her to open her eyes. After a few seconds Dean noticed her eyes fluttering. “Hey, there you are!” Dean patted on her face faster and harder. “Come on, all the way!” Lyra opened her eyes all the way, only to look at Dean full of fear. He never got the chance to question her before he felt a strong grip around his neck and his world faded to black.

 

The first thing that Dean was aware of was the sound of Lyra’s angry voice.

“Don’t you touch him!”

“Come on dad, let us hunt him.” Another voice joined. “He sure would be fun to hunt.” The sound of crazy laughter answered the voice.

Dean groaned as everything fell into place. Forcing his eyes open he faced his captors.  “You gotta be kidding me.  This is what this is all about. You yahoos hunt people?”

The old man smiled before leaning towards his victims.  “You two ever killed before?”

Lyra gave the old man a dirty look, shifting in her bonds. “Depends on what you mean.”

“I’ve hunted all my life. Just like my father and his before him. I’ve hunted deer and bear. I even got a cougar once. Oh boy!” The old man gave them a dirty toothy grin, shifting in his chair excitedly. “But the best thing I have ever hunted is human.” Dean cringed as pleasure spread across the man’s face.  “Oh, there is nothing like it, their life in your hands. Seeing the fear in their eyes before the life goes out.  It makes you feel powerful alive.”

Dean crinkled his face. “You are a sick puppy.”

Pa stands up crossing over to Lyra. “We give them a weapon, give them a fighting chance. It’s kind of like our tradition passed down from father to son.”  Placing his hand on her shoulders he continues. “Course we only take one or two a year.  Never enough to bring the law down on us. We’ve never been that sloppy”

Lyra cringes away her skin crawling at his touch. “Yeah from where I’m sitting you’ve been plenty sloppy.”

“Are you saying you are cops?” Pa asks, squeezing her shoulders tightly.

“If we tell you, do you promise not to turn us into an ashtray?” Dean taunts, trying to draw Pa’s attention away from Lyra.

Pa gives Lee a look, smiling Lee steps across the room to give Dean a punishing punch to the face. “The only reason I don’t let my boys take you outside right now is because there is something I need to know.” Pa continues reaching into his fire place to grab an iron poker.

“Ok, no it’s not alright to marry your sister!” Lyra chirps in glaring daggers at the men in the room.

“Tell me.” Pa ignores the jab “Are any of your police friends going to come looking for you?”

“Eat me..” Dean groans out.

“No, no, no, wait, wait.  They just might.” Lyra jumps in staring at the bones decorating the room in disgust.

 Jared crosses the room and grabs Lyra’s face holding it firmly in place. “You think this is funny.” Pa asks, fury blazing in his eyes. “You brought this down on my family.” Lyra refused to respond, glaring the old man down. “Alright, you want to play games, fine.” Standing up Pa gives his children an excited look.  “Alright boys, we will be having a hunt tonight after all.”  Taking a step towards Dean, Pa points the red-hot poker at him.  “And you get to pick, the boy or the woman.”

Dean’s eyes widen in panic. “Wait, wait, look no one is coming to look for us!”

Pa didn’t like that answer. “If you don’t choose I will.” He growls before lowering the poker onto Lyra’s shoulder.  Lyra lets out a pained shriek as the hot metal burns through her clothes and into her skin.’

Dean pulls at his restraints, eyes glaring murderously at his captors. “You son of a bitch!”

Pa moves the poker close to Lyra’s face. “Next I’ll take an eye.” He threatens.

“Alright, Alright, take the guy.” Dean grounds out.

Pa grins before standing up. “Lee.” he pulls a chain from around his neck. “Go do it, don’t let him out though. Shoot him in the cage.” Lee takes the key, smiling in understanding.

“What?” Dean questions, the mad man’s words sinking in. “I thought you said you were going to hunt him.  To give him a fighting chance.”

Pa stared at the hunter enjoying his distress. “Lee! When you are done with the boy, shoot the bitch as well.”

“You liar!” Lyra shrieked, struggling at the ropes as they dug harshly into her wrists.

“I swear if you hurt either of them, we will kill you! We will kill you all!” Dean shouts.

 

~The Barn~

Sam and Kara were startled when the barn door was harshly opened and one of their captors strode in.  Sam grew anxious as the man moved quickly to the lock box a gun hanging from his shoulder.  Something wasn’t right.

“What are you doing?” Sam called crouching in a defensive position when the lock to his door unlocked. Moving quickly, Sam grabbed the piece of metal he broke from the pipe earlier that day and readied himself.

Kara watched Sam’s movements carefully catching onto his plan, she needed to distract this man.  As the man moved to Sam’s cage raising his gun. “Hey!” She yells.

Surprised the man turned at the sound misfiring, allowing Sam to toss the metal at his face and avoid the bullet. Sam tackled the man punching him in his face. Wrestling the gun from him he used the butt of it to knock the man out. Checking to see if he could use the weapon, he noticed that it was jammed. “Damn!” Tossing it to the ground, Sam quickly made his way to the lock box and unlocked his friends cage.

As soon as it unlatched, Kara rushed out from her cage.  Unfortunately, her relief at freedom was short lived.  Shouts were coming from the direction of the house, meaning they were soon to have company.  Making her way over to the unconscious man Kara grabbed his ankles. “Come on Sam lets get this one locked up before his friends show up.”  Sam hurries over and grabs the man under the armpits and helps carry him into his cell.  After the unconscious man was secure, Kara turns to Sam. “We need to split up and hide. Take them out fast and get to Dean and Lyra.”

“Agreed, you go that way and I’ll go this way.” Sam said squaring his shoulders before heading to the light switch. “But Kara, don’t get caught.”

Kara grinned. “You just try and keep up, Winchester.” Turning her back she headed up to the hay loft.

Moments later the barn doors were kicked open.  Two men with guns filed in. “Lee!” The older man called. “Lee, where are you?” The man slowly lowered his gun when he noticed Lee locked in the cell. Whirling around he noticed that the other cell was empty, their prey was gone.

“Damn it, Jared, get the lights.” The younger man raced to the wall and flipped the light switch.  The lights stayed dead.

“They must have pulled the fuses!” Jared said punching the wall.

Raising their weapons, the men moved deeper into the barn. Trading a look between themselves the men split up.  Jared moved deeper into the barn while Pa climbed the hay loft. Kara watched Jared move from above. Skirting her way around the hole in the floor, she made her way to a cupboard.  Opening the door, she hoped there was something in there to use as a weapon.  The doors to the cupboard squeaked, making her freeze.  She waited and hoped she hadn’t been made.

Jared caught the noise and moved quickly to the cupboard.  Without waiting he opened fire, after emptying five rounds into the wood Jared carefully opened the doors to reveal rakes and shovels. Turning around in confusion Jared was taken completely off guard when Kara jumped from the loft straight onto his back. He flung around, struggling to throw her off him.  Kara grunted as his elbows rained blows on her head and arms, but she refused to let go.  She tried to wrap her arm around his neck in a sleeper hold.

From the loft above Sam heard the noises, raising his head he tried to see if his friend was ok. What he didn’t notice was Pa at the other end of the loft. Raising his gun Pa took a shot at the unsuspecting Winchester, the bullet burying itself deep into a hay bale. Ducking, Sam sprinted behind another hay bale, his mind whirling, trying to figure out how to take the old man down. Knowing he couldn’t stay where he was, Sam got up and ran for the stairs. Pa continued to fire shots as he followed his prey.

Back downstairs Kara continued her struggle to take Jared down.  Grunting, she could feel herself losing part of her grip. Sensing this, Jared was able to fling her to the floor.  Kara gasped as the wind was knocked from her lungs, her eyes watering. When her vision cleared, she noticed Jared pointing the gun straight at her face. “You stupid bitch!” Kara stared at the man in front of her.  If she was going to die tonight, she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of showing fear. Before Jared had the chance to take the shot Sam came barreling into the room.

“Hey!” He shouted.  Jared swung around firing his gun blindly. Sam threw himself to the ground avoiding the shot, giving a satisfied smile when he heard the bullet find the man behind him. Pa hit the ground in shock.  Pain flooding his system, he couldn’t believe that his son had shot him. Using this distraction Kara shot up from her place on the ground, grabbing the gun in Jared’s hands twisting it so she could hit the butt of the gun into his face. Maneuvering the gun again Kara then jabbed the weapon into Jared’s gut before swinging it back up clipping him in the chin effectively knocking him out.

Kara stood catching her breath eyeing Sam.  Sam had managed to take the gun and take up guard over the old man. “We should move them to the other cage and then find our siblings.”

Kara nodded sucking in a deep gulp of air.  “I’m good, let’s go.”  Grabbing Jared by the heel Kara unceremoniously drug the unconscious man to her old cell.  Sam quickly followed suit, shoving Pa in right after.  After making sure the cells were nice and secure, the friends made their way to the house.

Once inside Kara cringed at the family’s sense of décor. She knew she would be having nightmares about this experience for a time to come. Continuing their way into the living room the two hunters were surprised by the scene in front of them.  Their two older siblings were bound to chairs being guarded by a little girl with a knife. When the girl noticed the new people behind her, she whirled around with a shriek.  Charging Sam with the knife raised high she attacked him like a rabid animal.  Sam was undeterred, easily disarming the girl before restraining her with a bear hug. Kara couldn’t help but grin at the sight as the girl continued to scream and kick at Sam.

“A little help?” Sam question as he raised his eyebrows. Kara laughed but relented.  Walking across the room to an old closet. Opening the door for her friend, Sam tossed the girl inside and quickly locked the door.

               “Now, what do we have here?” Kara asked, turning to face Dean and her sibling with her arms crossed. “The great Dean Winchester and Lyra Magnum held captive by a little girl?”

Sam snorted. “I have to agree it’s a little embarrassing, guys.”

“Shut up!” Dean huffed. “Get your smart asses over here and untie us already!”

Kara grinned, noticing the slight flush on his cheeks.  Walking over to her sister Kara carefully undid the ropes, eyes narrowing in on the fresh burn.

“Besides, it was the three men that took us down. The girl only stood watch.” Lyra cut in, not ready to let her pride be wounded.

Sam let out a laugh.  “I don’t know, I think you must be getting a little rusty there….” Sam laughed as he mocked Dean, laughing even harder when Lyra’s face flushed bright red.

Kara’s smile died when she caught Dean staring at them seriously. “What?” She questioned.

“Don’t you two ever do that again!”  Dean raised his voice.

“Do what?” Sam asked, his face turning to a scowl.

“Go missing like that.” Dean hissed out as he crossed his arms.

Kara grinned, blushing a little.  “Aww, you were worried about us?”

“All he’s saying is if you go missing like that again, we aren’t coming to get you.” Lyra grunted, cradling her shoulder gingerly.

“Sure, you won’t.” Sam rolled his eyes, not believing what they were saying for even a second.

“We won’t!” Lyra insisted, trying but failing to not let the youngest Winchester get under her skin.

Their bickering was cut off as Kara pulled Dean and Lyra in for a hug.  “Thank you for coming. I knew you would.”

Sam joined the embrace. “And we will even forget that you were both sidelined by a little girl.”

Lyra jumped from the hug and took off after the youngest Winchester. “I swear to god Sam I will end you!”

Dean kept an arm wrapped around Kara as they watched Sam try his damndest to escape the angry Magnum. Glancing down he could finally clearly see the long gashes running the lengths of her arms.  “So, are you going to tell me how you got those?”

Kara followed his gaze to her cuts. Suddenly feeling bone tired she relaxed further into his arms.  “Yeah, I will, just not tonight.  I think we all could use a shower and a good night’s sleep.”

Dean looked at her curiously before tightening his grip on the tired woman. “Ok, let’s go before your sister kills my brother.  That would be a lousy end to today after all that just happened.”

Kara let Dean lead her outside, both of them doubling over with laughter at what they saw:  Sam pinned in a tree with Lyra chucking her shoes at him, trying to knock him out. “Come down from there you overgrown bastard and fight like a man! I swear I will never come looking for you again!” Failing to hit him with her shoes Lyra turned to find new ammunition, eyes lighting up when she found the perfect weapon.

“No, Lyra! You put that brick down!” Sam called, his voice humorous but laced with some fear. Seeing the intent in her eyes Sam quickly made his way further up the tree.

“This can’t just be about the comment he made in the house.  This is getting a little extreme.” Dean commented as he continued to watch the events unfold in front of him.

“No, this is punishment for him disappearing too.  Lyra isn’t always great with expressing her emotions, so this is the result.  You’re welcome to go break it up though.” Kara suggested, wincing when the first brick flew.

“I’m not that stupid!” Dean stated. “Right now, I would rather be wrestling a wendigo.”

“Coward.” Kara huffed. “Fine, I’ll go un-tree Sam while you phone the police.  We need to be long gone before they show up.”

Dean laughed, giving her a thumbs up in support.  He couldn’t be more grateful to have his family back safe and sound.


	10. Dead Man's Blood Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The four hunters finally find John Winchester but their reunion does not go to plan!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! My internship has crazy hours and I haven't found much time to write! I want to thank everyone that has taken time out of their day to read this story, your support means a lot!

“Daniel Elkins… where have I heard that name before?” 

              Sam’s mind wracked at the familiarity of the name he found in the obituaries of a local newspaper.  Glancing down to his right, he saw Dean sleeping as he lay next to Sam on the hood of the Impala.  Sam nudged his brother with a knee, disturbing Dean enough to wake him up.  “Dean… does the name ‘Daniel Elkins’ ring any bells to you?”

               Dean blinked a few times, his eyes adjusting to the daylight.  “What?”  He croaked right before he yawned, still half asleep.

               Sam muttered under his breath, shoving the newspaper in his brother’s face.  “Daniel Elkins… where have I heard that name?”

               Dean rubbed his eyes as he contemplated the name.  “Elkins… Elkins… I think there’s an Elkins in dad’s journal.”

               Sam nodded, lost in his thoughts as he hopped off the hood, heading for the trunk to retrieve the book that had led them across the country these past few months.  He knew he shouldn’t get his hopes up, but this had been the first lead they’d found in months.  If this Elkins man has any connection to their father, they had to check it out. 

               Sam came back to Dean, flipping through the old trusty pages.  Dean watched over his shoulder with curiosity as he skimmed the pale-yellow sheets, landing on a Daniel Elkins.  “You’re right… he’s in here.”

               Dean looks at the newspaper, taking a proper look at the obituary.  “Says here it was a suicide.”

               Sam and Dean’s eyes met, filled with doubt.  They didn’t believe that for a second.  “We have to take a look for ourselves.”  Luckily for them, there was an address in their father’s journal to go with the name, so they didn’t have to look it up.  For once, something was in their favor.  Not that it would have been very difficult for Sam to find, but one less extra step was always nice.

               Looking up, the boys eyes scanned the area for their traveling companions.  Kara and Lyra were splashing their feet around in the shallows of the pond they had parked by.  These girls had been their best friends since they were younger, and the boys were delighted that they were still by their side all these years later.  Even now, just by smiling and doing their own weird things, they were helping relieve the stress of the job.  The Winchesters found themselves cross armed and smiling in the girls’ direction, taking a pause and enjoying each other’s company.  The boys soaked in the sight until Kara caught them staring.

               “What?!”  She shrieked at them, demanding an explanation for the goofy looks on their faces.  

The boys burst out laughing.  Those girls really were the lights in their dark bloody lives.

~

               When the hunters found their way into Daniel Elkins house, they found very quickly that it wasn’t a suicide.  Not only were there signs of a struggle including a tipped over bookshelf and a broken window, the gun that was assumed to be the weapon used for the suicide was nowhere to be found.  Kara shook her head as she dug through a pile of papers that lay scattered on the floor.  “This is why I hate the justice system.  Anyone with any common sense should have been able to see this was a murder.”

               Sam dug through the drawers of the deceased man’s desk.  “There’s tons of research here.  He was definitely a hunter, or at least, he used to be.  I wonder what got him?”

               Lyra flicked pieces of glass away from the windowsill.  “Or what they wanted…”

               Dean heaved the fallen bookshelf back into place, digging through the books on the floor.  One caught his eye.  It was leather-bound and wrapped in a rubber band.  It looked just like his father’s.  “Hey, Sam, look at this.”

               Sam walked around the desk and stood next to his brother as he opened the book.  “It’s a journal…”  He muttered, watching as Dean flipped through the pages.  “Just like dads.”

               Kara and Lyra continued to search through the wreckage while the brothers skimmed the words contained within those leather-bound pages.  The boys weren’t finding anything, but Lyra was feeling around under the desk and found a single letter, taped to the bottom.  Opening it she found more information that would deem useful.  “Guys, sorry to interrupt your reading, but there’s a post office combination in here.”

               Handing over the letter, Sam and Dean cracked a smile.  “It’s a mail drop.”  Dean chuckled.  “Just like dad does it.”

               Kara patted her sister on the shoulder.  “Good finding!”

               Dean tucked the combination inside the journal he found and turned to the group.  “Thank you, Lyra.  This mail drop might have more information about what nabbed Elkins, or it might give us a new lead on dad.”

               The group continued to search for more clues around the office for a few more minutes, just to make sure there wasn’t any more information they could use.  They knew that there was a missing gun, an open and empty case was evidence of this.  They knew a monster had broken in through the window, and by the looks of it, nothing else was missing.  Whatever did this must have been after the gun.

               From the shadows of the forest, a pair of eyes watched cautiously as the hunters exited the house, climbing into the Impala with the journal in hand.  It had been watching over the house since its friend had killed Elkins, and wasn’t surprised to see the Winchesters and Magnums were on their trail.  A set of fangs protruded from its gums as it growled in its throat.  “They aren’t onto us, yet.”  The vampire waited until the Impala was out of sight before turning back and heading deeper into the forest. 

“Luther isn’t going to be happy about this.”

~

When the hunters made it to the nearest town, they checked the post office box numbered on the letter and tried the combination.  Dean sighed in relief when Sam got it open on the first try.  Lyra and Kara glanced at each other nervously as the boys hastily removed the contents, looking over all the addressees in a silent prayer that one would be from their father.  Their hearts jumped when they saw a letter addressed to “J.W.”

“John Winchester…”  Dean muttered, glancing to Sam for conformation before ripping into the envelope.  The boys didn’t even have time to read the contents before a familiar voice, a voice they were starting to doubt they’d ever hear again washed over their ears.

“That’s for me.”

All four of them whipped around, eyes wide.  None of them had even heard the door open or close as John Winchester himself entered the post office right behind them.  Dean and Sam fought with their emotions at the sight of him.  They didn’t know whether to yell, throw punches or run over and hug him.  Kara and Lyra stayed silent, glancing back and forth between Sam, Dean, and their father.  While the Winchester boys grappled with the shock of seeing their father, the Magnums were forced to push down their fears that maybe the boys wouldn’t need them anymore, now that they found their father.

John Winchester cracked a smile.  “Good to see you, boys.”  Sam and Dean nearly dropped the letters as they both ran over to their father, closing the gap between them in a flash as they tackled him in a hug.  Kara and Lyra glanced at each other, panic bubbling inside them.  What would happen to them, now that John was back?

John embraced his children for a moment before turning to the sisters.  Confusion furrowed his brows as he looked them over.  “Who are they?”

Dean perked up first, breaking away from his father to pull Kara closer to him for a proper handshake.  “This is Kara.  And that’s Lyra.”

Kara was subjected to an awkward handshake that felt worse than meeting a boyfriend’s parents for the first time.  Her face flushed as she flashed a small smile, Lyra waving at him from the corner of the room.  “Fellow hunters, at your service.”  Lyra muttered with a small chuckle, earning a grin from Sam and Dean, making her heart race.

Kara and Lyra were subjected by a harsh stare coming from John Winchester.  Their anxieties skyrocketed and they couldn’t break eye contact with the intimidating man.  Sam noticed the tension and coughed, handing his father the letter.  The girls breathed a silent air of relief as John broke his fiery gaze to read the contents of the letter. 

Kara retreated to Lyra’s side while they waited for John to finish reading.  Sam and Dean watched their father with wide eyes, waiting for something.  Anything. 

“That son of a bitch…”  John muttered, folding the letter up and putting it back in the envelope.  Dean and Sam exchanged a glance, looking back to their father for an explanation.

“What, what is it?”  Sam exclaimed, impatient for some sort of answer.  John had been MIA for months, they didn’t know if he was even alive, and now he was here he was acting as if nothing had happened. 

John paused, his eyes shifting from his boys to their friends.  He didn’t like these new friends of his sons, especially since they were women.  But he had heard from various other hunters that they had been sticking around his sons for quite a while and knew he wouldn’t be able to convince them to ditch the girls just yet.  So, he gestured for all of them to follow him as he left the post office.  “Come on.  I’ll explain everything at the hotel.”

John led the boys and their girls back to the hotel he was staying at.  When they got in the room and locked the door behind them, John sighed, shooting his sons an apologetic glance.  But Sam and Dean were past apologies at this point.  Kara and Lyra hid in the furthest corner of the room, not really belonging in this conversation but having nowhere else to go.  They watched with curious eyes as Dean swallowed hard, standing up to his father.  “Start from the beginning.”

They all listened as John explained how he had found new information on the demon, Alistair, the one who had killed his wife and Sam and Dean’s mother.  He felt he couldn’t put his boys in danger while he investigated the new lead, so he just dropped off the face of the earth.

John was shocked to learn that Kara and Lyra’s mother was killed by the same demon.

He continued to elaborate on his leads, what he had been doing all these months, and how the contents of that letter could change the entire game they were playing up to this point.  Change the rules entirely.

“So what’s the letter about?”  Kara piqued.  John’s face hardened once again as his attention was brought to the girls.  John could feel all the anger and hatred he felt towards himself all these years after losing Mary directed towards those two.  He had hoped Dean and Sam would have known better, having been raised in the hunting business, not to get attached to anyone.

“It turns out my friend Elkins was hiding a valuable piece of information from me.  A legendary gun that I had given up searching for.  I was convinced it was a myth.”

Sam and Dean exchanged a glance.  “What kind of gun?”  Sam inquired.

“It’s a colt.  One that is rumored to be able to kill anything.”

The boy’s eyes went wide.  Dean leaned forward.  “Even a demon?”

John nodded.  “Even a demon.”  John paused a moment, watching as his boys looked hopefully towards Kara and Lyra.  John’s heart felt like it was being constricted.  His boys were already in love with them… it was going to be much harder to separate them.  “I need to know what your found out at Elkins place.”

Sam and Dean described the mess they found there, the journal that was just like Johns, how Lyra found the combination to the safe, and most importantly how they did see a gun case, unfortunately empty.

John rubbed his chin.  “So they have the gun… this isn’t good.”  He explains that he exhumed Elkin’s body and knows it was vampires that killed him, and from the information his boys found, they must also have the gun.

“That only means one thing.”  Dean stated, grabbing his gun from where he had thrown it on the bed.  “We need to go get it back.”

John faced his eldest son, placing a firm hand on his chest to keep him from bolting out of the hotel room.  “Wait, Dean.  We don’t know where they are yet.  We would be searching blindly.”  Dean bites his lip as John takes another glance at Kara and Lyra, both of which were starting to fall asleep anyway.  “I’ll listen to my police scanner for any leads.  You four should get some rest.”

Sam and Dean looked at each other with skepticism, but once they took a moment and saw just how tired Kara and Lyra were, they realized their own eyelids were heavy.  Sam and Dean reluctantly agreed, the four of them fighting over and eventually piling up on the one available bed.  Luckily for them it was at least a king size, so they all fit… more or less.  They fell asleep practically in a pile.

As John turned on his police scanner, he glanced over at the sleeping bodies and couldn’t help but crack a smile at the tangle of legs and arms.  Just from the little interaction he’s had with his boys, and the way they were squished on the bed, his eldest Dean had taken a liking to the blonde one.  Even though they had tried arranging themselves in a way so that nobody was touching, Kara’s head was now propped up on Dean’s chest, with one of his arms thrown over her in a protective gesture as he snored.  Lyra was rolled over onto Kara, their legs tangled as they hugged in their sleep.  John smiled, knowing their bond must be strong.  Sam was laying on his side, facing Lyra.  He only had a hand touching her until he shifted in his sleep, mumbling something as he wrapped an arm around her, tugging her off her sister and pulling her closer to him.  Even though John wanted to hate those girls, even a blind man could see just how much they meant to his boys.  No matter how much that was apparent though, he still couldn’t allow it.  He would not let his sons be subject to the same horror that he was.

He turned away, facing the police scanner.  He tried to focus, keeping an ear out for clues.  All his mind could play was the way his wife looked in her final moments, burning on the ceiling.  How he had spent the majority of his life with a goal to avenge her death.  How he had missed out on being a real father to his precious boys because of it.

He didn’t want that for Sam and Dean.

He had been pondering the fates of his sons for a few hours when a report came in over the scanner that caught his attention.  A car was abandoned by a young couple after calling 911.  John knew the couple wouldn’t just leave after calling for help, and it was near where they were staying, too.  It could be the vampires.

“Sam, Dean.  Wake up.”  John stood over the boys, gently shaking each of them awake.  Dean looked down, seeing Kara sleeping on him.  He shook his head, rubbing his eyes as he took in the sight.  His face flushed as he looked over at Sam, who was experiencing a similar embarrassment, realizing he was spooning Lyra in his sleep.  They shot each other a look that silently agreed never to speak of this, moving the girls and getting out of bed slowly as not to wake them.  John watched with amusement at their behavior, and a longing for the days of his young love.  “I’ve got a lead.”  John stated, speaking quietly.

Dean nodded, avoiding his father’s gaze while he still had a red tint to his cheeks.  Sam’s face was even redder as he asked, “Where at?”

John didn’t answer, instead he grabbed his gun and opened the door.  “Just follow me.”

Dean could see that Sam was annoyed with that answer.  He opened his mouth to ask again when Lyra woke up at the sound of the door opening.  “Hey! Where you going?”  Her voice was sleepy, and Sam’s anger at his father ebbed away as he smiled at her.

“We’ve got a lead.  We were going to check it out.”

John didn’t have the chance to tell Lyra to stay before she pushed Kara.  “Get up! They got a lead!”

John had been hoping to spend some one-on-one time convincing the boys to ditch the girls.  That obviously wasn’t going to happen now.  He watched with frustration as Sam and Dean’s eyes practically sparkled as they watched Kara and Lyra struggle to wake up enough to grab their guns and follow them in a sleepy haste.  John just grunted, leaving the door open and headed out to his truck, waiting for his sons and their girlfriends to load into his old Impala and follow him to the site of the abandoned car.

~

The group stayed back by the Impala per John’s orders as he questioned the police officers that were surveying the area.  Dean was shifting his feet, Sam had his arms crossed, while Kara and Lyra glared daggers in John’s general direction.  It didn’t take long for him to come back, confident and unwilling to share his information.

Dean was ready to accept John’s word and follow blindly, but Sam stopped his father, backed up by a pair of angry sisters.  “Dad, I’m not going to just follow you around like some lost puppy!  I can fend for myself.  I’m an adult, we all are, and we deserve to know what we’re getting into here!!”

Kara and Lyra stood off to the side, backing Sam up with their presence but didn’t want to step out of line with their own words of anger.  John was treating them all like children.  The sisters didn’t like him anyway, and this just gave them more reason for it.  They finally understood first-hand why Sam left in the first place, and Kara couldn’t understand why Dean was being such a pushover.

“You’ve never worked with these monsters before, Sam.  They’re dangerous…”  John tried defending himself, but it backfired as Sam yelled right back.

“What isn’t?!  Wouldn’t it be better for us to learn?  Who are you protecting by not telling us?!”

John clenched his jaw, his teeth grinding in response to his sons defiance.  “You better watch your tone young man…”

Dean shook his head, anger welling up inside of him.  “STOP!! You two, knock it off!”  Lyra and Kara stood back in fear as they watched Dean’s eyes blaze at his father and brother.  “This is the first time we’ve all been together as a family in years and this is how you act?!”

John tried answering his eldest son but was cut off.  “Sam’s right.  We aren’t kids anymore.  Maybe we stand a better chance if we all work together!  And Sam!”  The hazel-eyed man looked down, shifting his feet.  “Can’t you put your feud with dad aside for one god damn minute!!  Please!”

Dean didn’t even get a chance to use his puppy dog eyes on them when Sam blew a fuse.  “No!  I won’t stop!  Dad is unfair and after all we’ve done to find him, he’s still treating us like shit!  This is why I left in the first place!!”  Sam took a few steps toward Kara and Lyra.  “These two have treated us more like family than HE ever has!!”  Throwing a finger in John’s direction, Sam could feel his throat tighten as the words he failed to unleash on his father the night he ran away came spewing out.  “You’ve always been blind to him, Dean.  I won’t let him walk all over me.  Stand up for yourself for once!”

Dean took a step towards Sam, ready to pummel him when John got in the middle.  “ENOUGH!”

Silence surrounded them as fiery gazes were exchanged between the three of them.  Lyra and Kara watched on in fear.  They couldn’t help but feel like this fight was partially their fault, no matter how much that wasn’t true.  John let out a breath he had been holding once he knew he wasn’t going to be in the middle of a fist fight.  “Grab your guns and your machetes.  I’ll explain on the way.”  As he walked past the Impala to get to his truck, he turned to Dean with a scowl.  “And Dean, why don’t you touch up your car before you get rust.  I wouldn’t have given you the damn thing if I thought you would ruin it.”

Dean’s head dropped as he got in the Impala, and everyone else followed suit without another word.

John had found a fang when talking with the police officers, which confirmed his suspicions on what had hunted down Elkins… Vampires.  He knew the culprits headed west, due to some tire tracks left on the road.  He wasn’t in the mood to teach these kids how to hunt, but he knew he would have more time to do so when they found their nest.  John didn’t give any hint as to how he knew they would be here, but he was right.

They pulled off the road and hitchhiked through a set-aside, quietly coming up upon an old run-down barn.  The sun was just beginning to rise, and they watched as two guards slipped inside the barn, leaving the yard open and unguarded.  Kara opened her mouth to ask what they were stalking, but to no surprise Sam beat her to it.

“No more hiding things from us Dad... what are they?”  Sam whispered in a demanding tone.

John turned away from the building, facing the four younger hunters.  He met all their eyes before speaking, quiet enough so his voice wouldn’t carry any further than between the five of them.  “They were what Daniel Elkins killed best… Vampires.”

Dean furrowed his brows, chuckling. “Vampires?  I thought there was no such thing.”

Sam clenched his jaw. “You never even mentioned them before.”

“I thought they were extinct.”  John took another glance back at the barn.  “I thought Elkins and others had wiped them out but… I was wrong.”

Lyra’s pupils dilated as she recalled all her research on the creatures, which was all inconsistent and varied from country to country.  For once, she didn’t know the first place to start.  “So, how do you kill them?”

“Most Vampire lore is crap, but if you’re the brains of the bunch I’m sure you already knew that.  A cross won’t repel them, sunlight won’t kill them, and neither will a stake to their heart.  But the bloodlust… that part’s true.  They need fresh human blood to survive.  They were once people, so you won’t know it’s a vampire until it’s too late.  You saw those guards, they looked just like people.”

Kara nodded.  “And the light obviously didn’t bother them…”

“Oh, it bothers them, like a nasty sunburn.  That’s why they went inside now that the suns coming up, but it won’t kill them.”

Sam whispered.  “What else do we need to know?”

John started listing off the facts.  “Vampires nest in groups of eight to ten.  Smaller packs are sent out to hunt for food, then victims are taken back to the nest where the pack keeps them alive draining them of blood for days or weeks.  And the only way to kill a vampire is beheading.”

Dean let out a small chuckle.  “Vampires.  It get’s funnier every time I hear it.”  Kara glared at him.

“It would have been nice if you had just told us what you thought instead of hiding it from us.”  Sam hissed.

Dean whispered as harshly as he could. “Tone down your static, Sam.”

Kara smacked Dean on the back of the head, and pointed a finger at Sam.  “There’s no time to argue!  We don’t have time to waste!”

Lyra grabbed her machete and looked towards the barn.  “So, if they don’t like sunlight, they must sleep in the day, and hunt at night.  So, I’m assuming your plan is to go in there while they’re asleep and look for the gun?”  Dean looked over to the barn in horror, and Kara winced, shaking her head like she had just heard the worst idea on the planet.  Sam just sighed.

The corner of John’s mouth betrayed the slightest hint of a smile.  “That’s the plan.”

The hunters climbed and hoisted each other up the side of the barn, utilizing the hayloft doors as their entrance.  From the second floor, they could look down and see vampires sleeping in hammocks suspended between the support beams of the barn.  They all slowly climb down the ladder.  Once they were confident that the vampires weren’t waking up, they began their search for the Colt.  John stayed near the vampires with a machete in hand, ready to slice and dice if something went wrong.  Sam and Dean went left, while Kara and Lyra went right.

The Magnum sisters held tightly onto their weapons as they stalked around the stalls.  They found what might have been an office back when the barn was in use, and Kara shot Lyra a hopeful glance as they slowly opened the door, wincing at the creaking the old hinges made.  Once inside, their eyes went wide.  There was a mattress on the ground, with a pair of vampires sleeping on it.  Besides the clothes littering the ground and a handful of valuables like jewelry and artifacts, there was a gun belt hanging beside the bed.  It was hard to see, but the girls could see the handle of a gun sticking out of the holster.  Even in the dark they could see a pentagram on the handle.  An exchanged glance and a nod confirmed that they both believed that was the gun they were looking for. 

Kara stayed standing with a gun and machete in hand, ready to strike if they woke up as Lyra expertly tip-toed her way around the clutter on the floor.  Their hearts were racing as Lyra’s fingers just about brushed the handle when a piercing inhuman scream filled their ears from somewhere behind them.  The two vampires in the bed awakened at once.  Lyra lunged, grabbing the gun and swinging her machete at the male vampire, missing him by a hair as he jumped up, knocking her over.  Kara shot her gun at the boarded window, shattering the old wood and exposing sunlight onto the half-naked vampires, making them hiss in pain.  Kara swung her weapon, striking the female vampire in the shoulder, missing her mark.  Kara cussed as she threw punches at the vampire, trying to get her at arms-length so she could take another shot at beheading her.  Lyra was scrabbling on the floor with the male vampire, wrestling over the gun. 

Before they had a real chance to win the fight, Kara was clubbed over the head.  Reinforcements had come and turned the tides against them.  Once Kara was down, the female turned with Kara’s gun in hand and pointed it at Lyra.  Anger filled her eyes as her shoulder continued to drip blood from Kara’s attack.  “Drop it or I kill you.” 

Lyra and Kara had just been caught.

**Author's Note:**

> Season 1 of the story has been completed and I will be posting periodically while we work on season 2. I believe we had decided to end this around season 11. Comments always welcomed!


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